Plastic Odyssey

Plastic Odyssey

by | Apr 20, 2024 | Charitable Trips, French Polynesia

“If we do nothing there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish by 2050.” This is the problem/scary prospect the Plastic Odyssey expedition is trying to address. Specifically, there is a need for a practical solution to the plastic waste problem that is both economically viable and self-sustaining. The idea at its heart is to develop a recycling technology that is simple to implement and easy to operate in places where plastic waste accumulation is most severe. Think third world countries that have few regulations and much consumption of plastic contained products. Senegal, a country experiencing extreme plastic pollution of its coastline already has a facility in place. Key to success, however, is that the recycling enterprise must be profitable to work. Hence the focus on recycling manufacturing designs that are inexpensive to produce and maintain. And this is not just about cleaning up beaches. The result is an economically viable product, e.g., beams, roofing tiles, specialty molded parts, that can be sold on a competitive basis to local consumers.

Plastic Odyssey

S/Y Seahawk was introduced to the Plastic Odyssey team in Monaco coincident with the Royal Yacht Club of Monaco La Belle Class Superyacht Awards. S/Y Seahawk won in the category of “Adventure and Environmental Ethics”. It was at this event that Nicola Watton, Chief Stewardess, receiving the award on Seahawk’s behalf, met Plastic Odyssey’s CEO, Simon Bernard. Her introduction led to the tour of Plastic Odyssey during our visit to Hao French Polynesia.

Plastic Odyssey Hao Pass

The Plastic Odyssey team acknowledges that reduction/elimination of plastic waste entering the environment is an existential challenge. In the interim, boutique recycling systems like those demonstrated on the vessel could serve to mitigate until a more proactive solution is adopted.

To learn more about Plastic Odyssey, visit their website at: https://plasticodyssey.org/en/ 

Written by: Adam Alpert

Fiji, Part III – School Visits and Cruising Lau, Lomaiviti, and Kadavu

Fiji, Part III – School Visits and Cruising Lau, Lomaiviti, and Kadavu

by | Jan 24, 2023 | Charitable Trips, Fiji

The Lau group is located on the eastern side of Fiji and east of the Koro Sea. With some islands closer to Tonga than to Fiji, the populated islands of the Lau group have a unique mix of Polynesian and Melanesian cultures. 

Vanua Balavu, the chief island, was our first stop on this side of the world. We found shelter from the bad weather in the Bay of Islands, a region characterized by the many green mushroom-like islets that rise from the sea, creating small coves surrounded by calm, turquoise waters.

It was here that the Seahawk team visited a local school in the village of Daliconi. We also participated in our first Sevusevu; a ceremony where the visitors meet the chief and inform him of the intentions of the visit, acknowledge the clans that exist on the island and present an offering of quality Kava root. 

The Sevusevu ritual is mandatory when visiting any of the islands, as one needs to be welcomed in to enter the village. Valu was our representative on the ritual, and after being accepted, we were all allowed to visit the town.

We were shown around the village and the school, meeting the teachers and the children. 

Village life is very simple, but the community’s basic needs are met. The school system in particular is a primary focus, as is the church for the villages’ largely Christian population. The 1st through 8th classes often involve several grades merged together depending on the age of the students attending. And the teachers, provided by the government, usually come from bigger areas, like Viti Levu. Their contracts normally last a year, but some stay on longer depending on personal circumstances including the nature of opportunities elsewhere. 

Daliconi Village School has 3 teachers and 25 children of several ages. This school had no internet and no cell phone service. Periodically, the headmistress, who has a cell phone, pilots a small school boat to a special spot in the lagoon where a cell signal is available. There she can communicate with her superiors and send reports. 

Although this supposes an extra effort, the teachers see the bright side in maintaining a traditional style of teaching, away from modern technology and internet usage.

Daliconi was the first of three schools visited during our journey throughout the Lau group. Village communities in the Lau group have much in common, but there are small differences. The Oneata (Southern Lau) school, for example, recently installed an internet connection, and the school administrator emphasized the importance of designing an e-learning curriculum that prepares the students to compete successfully off the island, while also making the teaching relevant to their daily lives.

Seahawk’s warm welcome by the Lau Group island peoples was a treasure to be cherished. What started out as a somewhat routine mission to help the schools by donating learning materials and sports equipment turned into one of the most heartwarming and uplifting embracements ever. The friendliness and curiosity of the kids throughout all of our visits were salient. One of the most candid moments we had was in Udu village, on Totoya island; After introducing ourselves to the very young children, they all seemed too shy to talk to us, but then Righardt (the dive instructor on board) asked them about rugby and broke the ice in the room; glowing eyes and big smiles, many of them showed an enthusiasm that only grew when they saw the rugby balls gifted to the school. Clearly, there is no doubt as to which sport is the most popular in the country.

The village visits in Lau were a privilege for us, as we experienced Fijian culture and witnessed the lifestyle in such a remote part of the world. Unaccessible for most tourists, some of these islands have maintained a basic way of life. The community is also highly collectivist; a lot of value is put into the vanua (a concept that means family, village, and land); it is the norm to take care of each other, and obligations and rewards are shared between the inhabitants.

Exposure to Fiji island life also invites an opportunity to compare one’s own cultural baseline with others. Life for many Fijians is patriarchal and hierarchical. There is a defined line of power, with the chief of the village being at the very top of the structure and leading all decisions. A lot of respect is also given to the elders, who often share knowledge about the history of the land with the younger generations. Women traditionally maintain the role of caretakers, as in many other parts of the world. This was most apparent during our visit to Gau, where guests and some crew visited the village of Nawaikama to attend one of Fiji’s most traditional features; the Meke.

The Meke is an art show where stories are shared through songs and dancing. Women and men are dressed in traditional clothes to dance and chant songs about their history and culture.

As Captain Steve remembers from this particular day:

“When arriving at the village as a mixed group of crew and guests, we were very subtly but firmly segregated into two groups. The guest group, mainly female, plus the female crew members were ushered on a tour of the village while I and the other male crew were taken directly to the village hall where the elders of the village had gathered for the usual Kava ceremony. Even there when we arrived, as the captain I was separated from the other crew members and placed to sit with the senior members of the village… this was clearly a natural process for them, but stood out to us.”

Although we had a rough idea of what this event would be like thanks to Valu, what we experienced was unexpected.

When we arrived at the village hall where the Meke would be hosted there was a crowd waiting. It seemed like the whole village had descended to greet us; the elders on one side, some older adults drinking Kava, and very young kids, women, and teenagers sitting on the opposite side. All were expectant for the show that was about to begin.

As guests, we sat facing the town locals, and one by one we introduced ourselves. We drank Kava, attended the sevusevu, and politely listened to some prayers. And then we watched the dancing and the singing, amazed by the room’s music and the joyfulness. Men, women, and teenagers all danced to their well-rehearsed function. Everyone sang. We all ended up dancing together and sharing a fun, memorable moment.

There are not so many places in the world where the whole town gathers to deliver the amazing warm welcome the Seahawk group received. Here in Fiji, though, events like this are an occasion for everyone in the village to share time together, and at the same time to proudly introduce outsiders to their culture and traditions. We should all wish there were more places like Nawaikama.

Seahawk’s voyage around Fiji was an educational experience for everyone on board. We saw the good and the bad, the sad and the uplifting, and all in all, the reality of a nation characterized by a multicultural population navigating through modern-day challenges. The effects of overfishing and climate change on the environment and society, and the delicate balance between maintaining a traditional lifestyle while preparing the youth to navigate a world where technology and digital skills are necessary, were all on display

Although rainy, the last days of our voyage in Fiji were marked by good sailing, good hiking, and visits to some of the best dive spots in the region. The underwater surroundings seemed healthier than those experienced during some of our earlier stops; a reason to stay hopeful and keep fighting to protect the country’s unique marine life and coral reefs.

We arrived back at our home base in Viti Levu at the beginning of September, with a whole new perspective on the country. Seven weeks of circumnavigating the region were now complete. And so ends Seahawk’s first South Pacific journey. An adventure of a lifetime that had Seahawk crew, owners, and guests experiencing the wonders of places like French Polynesia, Fiji, and beyond. The end of the beginning. Many more adventures await on this side of the world.

With owners and guests departed, Seahawk headed directly to Auckland for a well-deserved shipyard period, a 10-year refit, in order to be ready and back in action by June 2023. Although the itinerary for next year is still to be decided, a big menu beckons. There are so many great South Pacific opportunities, and candidate archipelago places to visit. What’s next? Can’t wait to find out. 

For now, we’ll keep reflecting on the Seahawk mission around the world, the lessons learned, and the adventures waiting ahead.

Bonaire – Covid Times & The Seahawk Puppy Village

Bonaire – Covid Times & The Seahawk Puppy Village

by | Jan 23, 2023 | Bonaire, Charitable Trips

Seahawk arrived in Bonaire in March 2020, just a couple of days before the global alarm of the newly discovered Covid-19 pandemic forced countries to close their borders.

Everyone has a story about how their plans in the year 2020 drastically changed. So here’s ours. 

What was initially going to be a short trip, ended up being a 4-month stay on the island. This period was also the beginning of Seahawk’s involvement with local initiatives, and a journey that inspired a different type of travel, one that is marked by participating in local projects that serve to help the coastal communities. All aboard experienced a deeper understanding of this municipality within the kingdom of Holland and its culture.

The first month in Bonaire was about accepting the reality that everyone on board Seahawk was stuck. Our jail was a paradise of sorts, but freedom denied, no matter how gilded the cage, presents an uncomfortable feeling. There was also a genuine concern that someone might get sick. Early in the pandemic, there were no vaccines and the island’s small hospital only had two ventilators for the entire municipality. 

It is interesting to juxtapose Covid and favorite destinations, knowing that most people experienced the epidemic feeling physically trapped and psychologically tortured. Our Covid time was quite different; the over three-month quarantine was interesting, rewarding, and fun.

Bonaire remained open two more days after our arrival on March 12th. Once the last cruise boat departed, the island was closed to all new visitors. Evacuation flights were organized for those vacationers caught unaware of the impending quarantine. Soon after, the airport closed. Almost simultaneously, the entire Caribbean community of countries closed. Sailing to the USA might have been a possibility, but out of 15 people on board, only three of us were US residents, and the USA was not letting in foreign travelers at that time. We had nowhere to go. As a result, our planned three-day visit turned into something closer to 4 months.

But isolating in Bonaire did offer some advantages. 

One of the reasons Seahawk’s initial stay was planned to be short was the lack of adequate anchorage for super yachts. The sea bed drops off precipitously around the island, and although the west side is protected from weather most of the time, very few yachts have enough chain to manage depths that reach 300 feet and beyond near to shore. The only alternative was one of the commercial docks, which berths large cruise boats and has limited availability to the occasional super yacht. But these times were different. Given there weren’t going to be any more cruise ships for a while, this dock became Seahawk’s new home. 

The stranding turned out to be a blessing. Life went on more or less as before, as there were no infections on the island. Being part of the Dutch state also helped, as the influx of government money kept everyone afloat. One could still buy ice cream at Gio’s Gelateria on Main Street in Kralendijk, and many restaurants stayed open, too. Bonaire became kind of a bubble, insulated from the outside world.

Although our delegation didn’t touch everyone on the island, we certainly tried. Among our goals while there for this indeterminant period was to patronize every business that would have us. Activities ranged from exploring the island’s extensive underground cave system to riding ATVs in the desert, to diving at the many excellent dive sites protected by STINAPA (part of the National Park Authority). We visited all the restaurants still open, took a guided kayak tour of Bonaire’s famous mangrove marsh, and hired a local yoga instructor to provide private lessons to crew and owners twice a week.

We also got involved in a local animal shelter, initially by volunteering and later in the form of implementing a new construction project to house dogs for adoption. It was this project that gave birth to The Seahawk Family Puppy Village.

We can be especially proud of the Puppy Village. Much credit goes to our Captain at the time, Henry Bardsley, and Chief Stewardess, Keryn Rankin, who championed and managed the work. But the owners and other crew members made good laborers, and the funding came 100% from the owner’s foundation.

The Puppy Village was a good experience for all involved, and it also served as a nice prototype for how to help in a constructive way. The key is buy-in from local supporters, in this case, the Bonaire Animal shelter workers, and its board. We also made an effort to acquire goods and services locally when possible, part of the reason the project enjoyed so much visibility among islanders over its 1.5-month duration. 

The end of the project was celebrated with a barbecue involving the workers, volunteers, and Seahawk’s owners and crew. In a time when chaos and uncertainty lingered in the air due to the new global pandemic, this small activity gave us the realization that you can always do something good with what’s in your control.

The interest created increased community involvement. And the adoption rate, the best indicator of success, went up, too. Seahawk made many new friends due to the Puppy Village, some of whom stay in contact with us even to this day. 

Stewardess Thea remembers: “It was very satisfying to see the progression of some of the dogs that arrived at the shelter; from being underweight and suffering from mange, to happy, healthy dogs after being taken care of by the volunteers at the shelter. During our time there we also witnessed some of the dogs we grew to love finding a family. It was a truly heartwarming experience.”

If you’d like to know more, here’s a video documenting the process of the project.

Of course, things are not always perfect in paradise. Over the course of our time in Bonaire, we got to know the various factions and their advocacies. Needless to say, there is not 100% agreement on things. High on the list of controversies is the protection of the environment vs. commercial interests. While well intending, the park department, STINAPA is viewed negatively by some. And the battle often gets personal; we hosted a party on Seahawk for some local officials, representatives from the park authority, and others, including members of the press; It didn’t take long before underlying hostilities came afloat. 

The island of Bonaire offers much natural beauty both above and below the sea. It’s one of the top destinations we’ve visited, largely because we were able to engage with the island community. Our COVID stranding happened at a unique time in a unique place. If the original three-day plan had been consummated, probably Bonaire wouldn’t have made the list. And that’s the point. Without the confluence of several strange (bad) events, our visit would have objectively been superficial, providing just a taste. Something to consider if exploration of this side of the world is on the agenda.

When Seahawk finally departed Bonaire in mid-June 2020, a small crowd of locals formed on the dock to say goodbye. The end of a chapter, but one we will cherish forever. 

Galapagos – Sailing and Swimming Program

Galapagos – Sailing and Swimming Program

by | Nov 7, 2022 | Charitable Trips, Galapagos

We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men. – Helman Melville

As we sail away, reaching new horizons, we remember the days spent in the Ecuadorian islands of San Cristobal, Isabella, and Santa Cruz. Becoming acquainted with the community and supporting the launch of a swimming and sailing school was an opportunity for us to understand  the Galapagos residents, their culture, struggles, and achievements.

Seahawk arrived in San Cristobal at the end of June of 2021. After a few days settling in from our latest crossing, we commenced work with our partner, YachtAid Global, to complete Galapagos’s first swimming and sailing community center, a Project 12 months in the planning.

YachtAid Global (YAG), a charity supported by a core group of yacht owners dedicated to working with ocean-bordered communities to enhance infrastructure, education, and environmental conservation, has been involved in several projects in the Galapagos with the intention to support the local population in areas where assistance is needed. Providing clean water systems to island schools, opening a new library, and delivering classroom supplies and computers nicely captures the nature of the organization’s efforts during its 16-year history.

The goal of this new project was the launch of Lobo Marino, a sailing and swimming school located in Bahia Naufragio, in San Cristobal Island, as well as the expansion of the swimming program to the islands of Isabella and Santa Cruz. The school focuses on a younger generation of Galapagos residents aged 10 to 17.

The program was born to address a need for certain life-saving skills including the ability to swim. According to the WHO and local authorities, 65% of children in the Galapagos don’t know how to swim. And by another estimate, 8,000 resident children do not have access to a facility that would allow them to master swimming. 

For the population in Galapagos, the ocean plays a large role in people’s lives. Without the necessary swimming skills, children and adults are at risk of drowning. This is a problem that today accounts for 320,000 deaths a year around the world, particularly in low and middle-income countries.

The objective of the sailing program is to introduce children to a new sport that not only promotes physical fitness and self-confidence, but also fosters the creation of interpersonal bonds within the community. The exposure to boats and sailing also suggests opportunities to achieve a seafaring career both within the Galapagos and beyond.

Promotion of the initiative was also an important focus. Over the course of the two-week period, owners, crew, and YAG representatives worked to roll out the project with formal presentations to the community members, local authorities, and dignitaries. Most rewarding were the visits with island children, as many were excited to learn more about the new program.  

The project started with the inauguration ceremony of the school that was conducted in the Malecón of San Cristobal. The program was presented to the local community, and agreements between YAG and the Municipality were signed. Following speeches from Seahawk’s team, as well as from local sailors that talked about their experiences, the presentation of the trophy for the annual sailing regatta was conducted.

News of our visit and the sailing school activities spread further up political echelons, and reached the Prime Minister of the Galapagos, who in fact joined us for dinner on board Seahawk. This was an interesting meeting, one suggesting the “Swim & Sail” had the attention and in most cases support of island leadership. 

The following days were about spending time with the children on board Seahawk, introducing them to the discipline of navigating a large vessel and what it takes to be a professional crew member. We took the children and their parents sailing and showed them what living on a boat is like, along with the benefits of a vocation in seafaring.

The time spent by the crew teaching the kids how to sail was remarkable. On the islands of Isabella and Santa Cruz, Seahawk’s professional sailors gave the kids sailing lessons on Seahawk’s Tiwals, introducing them to a new hobby that many enjoyed and seem motivated to keep trying.

In support of the sailing program in San Cristobal, we got to know Emilio, a 15-year-old who previously had the fortunate experience to join another superyacht for a crossing from Galapagos to Tahiti. He is an extremely positive boy and was able to express his experience to the gathered children from the town at the presentations about the sailing school. He may well follow the path to a career at sea having been exposed to it at a young age, which is exactly what the school hopes to achieve with others in the community.

In San Cristobal, Seahawk provided the school with 4 new Optimist boats that were launched on the week of the inauguration, and the first lessons were conducted. Seahawk provided funding for the development of the facilities and the hiring of local sailing and swimming instructors.

The Swim & Sail project has been, without a doubt, one of Seahawk’s most rewarding projects. It was a fantastic opportunity for the crew and owners to engage with the Galapagos community.

The reception we received from the Mayors of the 3 main population centers, San Cristobal, Isabella & Santa Cruz, was amazing. The interest shown by the young people involved in the program was heartwarming. It is clearly apparent that the local community considers youth education important. Despite limited resources, they have built many recreational facilities, even though quality education is a challenge in some parts.

It is inspiring to see how Galapagueños take pride in their region, their land and their culture, as it’s shown by their commitment to making their archipelago home a better place. In particular, the focus on motivating youth to embrace understanding and preservation of the environment, their precious land, is heartwarming.

To this day we monitor project developments.  Swim & Sail continues to grow, largely due to the hard work invested by YachtAid Global, other yachts, and so many local volunteers.

Next in Galapagos, Seahawk joins scientist Alex Hearn, one of the most respected and accomplished shark researchers in the world. The boat’s mission, Operation Swimway is an important shark migration study organized by Alex and his team with support from S/Y Seahawk. The work is to be conducted around the waters of Wolf and Darwin, remote islands located in the Northern Galapagos region. More to come on that soon.