OUR  ACHIEVEMENTS

From 1997 to 2020 :

23 years dedicated to ocean conservation

and public awareness

Some achievements realized : 

• Nominated Earth Champion, Member of IUCN and Partner of the ACCOBAMS Agreement

• Study and protection of cetaceans in the north-western Mediterranean seas (since 1997)

• Sea surveillance of the Pelagos Marine Sanctuary (since 2002)

• Protection of Green Turtles nests of Comoros Islands in Ndroudé (since 2010)

• Film projections in Ndroudé, in order to raise awareness about the marine life (since 2019)

• Safeguarding the Mediterranean Monk Seals (since 2012)

• Distributing special nets to local fishermen in Mexico, to prevent Mexico’s “Vaquita" or California porpoises extinction. Nets that are harmless to porpoises. (2014)

• Participation in the creation of the Balearic islands Marine Sanctuary (2018)

• Organizing 260 scientific expeditions at sea (Côte d'Azur, Balearic islands, Azores, Bahamas, Vancouver)

• More than 1,500 working days at sea to study cetaceans and the problem of microplastics, off the coast of French Riviera and Balearic Islands

• 1,387 ecovolunteers embarked on SCS’s scientific expeditions

• 31 sea workshops to raise youth awareness of marine ecology

• More than 400 young people embarked on the SCS’s Sea Workshops

• Closure of Switzerland’s only dolphinarium. Achieved thanks to an action led by Isabelle Chevalley, National Councilor in Parliament (2012)

• Reaching an agreement with IOC that no captive dolphins are to be used at the opening ceremony of the Sotchi Winter Olympic games (2014)

• Collecting and submitting 15,000 signatures to authorities in Bern demanding an end to Switzerland’s support for the resumption of commercial whaling at the IWC (Swiss Against Whaling 2011)

• Campaigns against dolphin captivity (Switzerland, Caribbean, Guatemala, Quebec)

• Campaigns against dolphins captured by industrial fishing nets

• Campaigns against the use of infrasonic sonar by US Navy and NATO

• Campaigns against the seal hunt in Norway

• Design of an eco-label regulating whale watching in Goa (2019)

• Training and supervision of more than 30 SCS Naturalist Guides

• More than 160 free public lectures on the topic of marine world

• Creation of the ACCOBAMS Training Kit. Educational tool used by those who organize research projects to safeguard Mediterranean cetaceans (ACCOBAMS 2002 mandate)

• Creation in Lausanne of a media library specialized in marine life (CDU ranking)

• Publication of a book on cetaceans (Les Cétacés en Questions, M. Rod, SCS, 2007)

• Creation of an SCS App for the identification of cetaceans (AppStore 2019)

• Over 60 courses in cetology and marine biology

• Over 60 stands giving information and raising general public’s awareness

• Over 300 media appearances in the French-speaking part of Switzerland (press, radio, television)