As a life-long ocean environmentalist and president of Ocean Futures Society, it is with great pleasure that I welcome my good friend and Ocean Futures Society Board member Dr. Sylvia Earle, and the Sustainable Seas Expedition (SSE) to Santa Barbara, my hometown community. For the next two and one half weeks, Sylvia and her team will lead a unique endeavor to discover, understand and share the life that dwells in the depths of the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary. This 19-day research project is part of a five-year study to survey all the National Marine Sanctuaries of the continental United States. It is sponsored by National Geographic with support from the Richard & Rhoda Goldman Foundation.

I not only endorse the work being conducted by SSE, but also urge people, especially children and students, to take an active interest in following the progress of this remarkable scientific journey. It brings together marine science experts and local high school student researchers who will work together aboard NOAA's ship MacArthur in our own watery "backyard". Using the DeepWorker submersible and remote technologies, the team will broadcast its discoveries to millions of people via the web. And for the first time, the living resources, habitats and conditions of one of the world's great marine ecosystems will be revealed to us.

SSE provides us all with a rare glimpse of the deep sea. It is an opportunity to learn more about our Sanctuary, encompassing the convergence zone for warm and cold Pacific currents. The protected boundary encircling the northernmost Channel Islands holds within it a rich array of plant and animal life. As my father once said, "people protect what they love." But to do so, we must first be educated about these natural treasures in a way that moves us to action. The SSE experience will deliver the lessons we need to better appreciate the ocean. It is my hope that it will also lead us toward sustainable management of this invaluable national asset, protecting it for generations to come.

Respectfully yours,

President, Ocean Futures Society