When human needs are met through stable incomes, rural communities are better able to help protect wildlife for the future. Proyecto Tití alleviates the threats posed by plastic bags, while empowering women in rural communities by teaching them practical skills that help generate income for their families.

The food we eat, the clothes we wear, the work we do, and the leisure activities we pursue affect the world around us—from coral reefs to farmlands, from sea turtles to ourselves. Our own behavior is, in fact, the direct cause of many of the most pressing environmental problems we now face, including the status of sea turtles.

Back in the 1950s, the “riddle of the ridley turtle” stumped renowned sea turtle biologist Archie Carr. Where did that name come from? And where, indeed, did the turtles come from? Researchers have been working tirelessly to solve it ever since. In this Special Feature, SWOT presents the first ever global map of the biogeography of Olive ridley sea turtles.

Jessy was taught the art of turtle catching by village elders in Ulithi, Yap, Micronesia, where he grew up hunting sea turtles as a means to provide food for his community. Jessy still hunts turtles—for research.

Turtle excluder devices (TEDs) have been shown to reduce sea turtle bycatch. Yet fishers often see things differently, and as with the use of any tool, the use of TEDs must be mastered through experience. Today, TEDs are widely accepted as part of the bycatch solution and are mainstreamed into daily fishing activities throughout the United States.

Until recently, the exploitation of sea turtles was still legal under Bahamian law. In September 2009, an important victory for the protection of sea turtles occurred when the government of The Bahamas declared a complete ban on the directed take of sea turtles.

Sea turtles are survivors. They have weathered radical climate changes in the past 100 million years. However, they have never faced anthropogenic changes of the scope and speed proposed for the coming decades.

To truly understand how these animals live, we need to get wet. After all, they are sea turtles, not beach turtles. Modern technology allows scientists to follow turtles wherever they go, to see what they see, and thus to better understand and protect them in their watery world.