Turtle Diaries
India
Key Objective:
Educating the public about the four species of sea turtles that breed in India’s coastal habitats, and facilitating dialogue between scientists and local community-based conservation groups through the effective use of media tools.
Why this is important:
While several groups have the knowledge base to put effective conservation actions into practice, others lack practical experience in implementing appropriate measures. These groups are beginning to pool resources through the efforts of the Turtle Action Group (TAG). The vision for the Turtle Diaries project is to provide media tools to assist in conservation education and to empower the communities to share their knowledge base and resources.
Background
The Dusty Foot team investigated sea turtle conservation issues in “The Right to Survive” (2006). The film was balanced between the natural history of olive ridley turtles, conservation challenges and livelihood issues faced by fishing communities. It won two Indian Documentary Producers Association awards and a Jeevika Film Festival Award (2007) and was used extensively by stakeholders concerned with turtle conservation.
The ultimate scene in “Right to Survive” shows the children of Rushikuliya racing barefoot with buckets of turtle hatchlings. Arriving at the foaming waves, the children empty their bucketfuls and the hatchlings use floppy limbs to swim into the blue. This moment was the genesis of the “Turtle Diaries” project.
Aims and Objectives
Major objectives are to:
- Document sea turtle natural history in India’s coastal and marine habitats.
- Chronicle the deep cultural connections linking sea turtles and coastal communities.
- Record interviews and discussions about sea turtle natural history and conservation. Members of the scientific community and India’s community-based conservation groups will be interviewed.
- Empower communities to document their conservation actions and field data.
- Create an online presence that gives conservation groups a voice and facilitates in the dialogue process.
Project leader:
Rita Banerji, Maya Khosla
Partners:
Dusty Foot Productions
Related threat:
Years funded:
2011-2012
Beach Patrol— and a Report on Agatti Island Airport
— .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 21 April, 2013
“It’s a turtle! Sit!” Abdul Raheem, Environment Warden of Agatti Island, sank back into the bushes after his rapid-fire announcement. Imrana Khan, Vijender Sharma and I dropped down beside him immediately. Unlike Abdul, we could see nothing but sand and…
River Full of Hatchlings
— .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 16 April, 2013
Are there some among the olive ridley sea turtle hatchlings who fight the odds and find their way to sea— from the Rushikulya River mouth? Yes, say the Forest Department officials and staff. Yes, say the researchers. And the fishermen…
Full Circle
— .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 07 April, 2013
Mass hatching began late last night. The painstaking efforts of 120,000 olive ridley sea turtles, who clambered up the Rushikulya sandbar (Orissa) to lay their eggs in mid-February (2013), have borne fruit. Apparently a massive number of eggs were lost…
The Crosscurrents of Conflict
— .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 05 April, 2013
The idyllic Lakshadweep Islands are probably the last place on earth where a visitor can envision any form of deep conflict or long-standing struggle. But there they lie—troubled waters in the so-called paradise where sea turtles are in plenty. Indeed,…
Nests Upon Nests?
— .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 07 March, 2013
In the east coast state of Orissa, the Rushikulya sandbar hosted an estimated 120,000 olive ridley sea turtles during the arribada—a 6-day mass nesting event beginning on February 13 2013! Olive ridley sea turtles usually disperse, swimming to other locations…