SEE Turtles links people with sea turtle sites in ways that directly support efforts to protect sea turtles. Going beyond the ecotourism mantra of not impacting the environment that tourists visit, SEE Turtles suggests that tourists should make an impact - a positive one - through conservation tourism. Conservation tourism supports communities protecting sea turtles by increasing the income needed for local conservation efforts, providing economic alternatives to end threats to sea turtles and inspiring travelers to take a more active role in protecting sea turtles. Opportunities include helping local researchers catch turtles at sea to study and patrolling the nesting beaches olive ridley nesting beaches.

We work with high quality tour operators to offer travel to key sea turtle conservation sites. In addition, we have developed best practice guidelines for turtle viewing to reduce negative impacts of tourism on turtles both on the beach and in the water. Our tour operator more... partners have strong records of investing in local communities and conservation efforts. In addition to choosing sites that most need economic alternatives, we have also developed a comprehensive list of best practices for turtle viewing which will guide people to reducing negative impacts on turtles and local communities.

We promote conservation tourism to sea turtle hotspots where visits will result in economic alternatives to poaching and fishing and increase resources for conservation programs. We have also developed best practice guidelines for turtle tourism to reduce negative impacts on turtles and local communities from visits.

www.seeturtles.org

503-336-5651