Photograph by Wayne Levin

Dear friends,

I’m stoked about what’s going on at Blue Frontier but even more concerned about the state of our ocean.  Recently while snorkeling in Hawaii I witnessed reefs turned skeletal white from coral bleaching. We’re now in the third global bleaching event since 1998 caused by a warming ocean driven by the burning of fossil fuels. While I’m hopeful strong actions will be agreed to at the Paris Climate Summit I’m also incensed that new offshore oil drilling has been proposed for the Arctic Ocean and along our Atlantic coastline.  We aim to make this a major campaign issue in 2016, so we can stop the drilling and move on to renewable job-generating clean energy.

Blue Frontier, a small organization that splashes way above its weight class, accomplished some major initiatives in 2015 and we’re set to do even better with the Sea Party Coalition in 2016. In May we held the largest Citizen Lobby for Ocean Conservation in history.  Delegations from 24 states met with 9 Senators, 25 House members and 120 congressional staffers to support a bipartisan bill aimed at ending unregulated and pirate fishing in the world’s ocean.  Two months later the House passed the bill and the Senate followed.  On November 5th the President signed it into law.

We also let our elected representatives know that we will actively oppose proposed new offshore oil and gas drilling.

On November 4 we officially launched the Sea Party, a national coalition of engaged citizens ranging from the Sierra Club to coastal businesses, fishermen, surfers, divers, boaters regardless of political affiliation who are working to defeat proposed new offshore oil surveying and drilling in 2016.

The Sea Party press conference outside the U.S. Capitol included an 85-foot life sized blue whale, old friends like Democratic Congressman Sam Farr of California and climate activist Bill McKibben and new friends like Republican Congressmen Curt Clawson of Florida and Mark Sanford of South Carolina, an evangelical minister, a former petroleum engineer and many others. Our broad, nonpartisan effort to protect our coastal economies and ecology reflects a very different makeup from past environmental battles.  It’s as much about business, place and faith than it is traditional political alignments.

Now it’s up to you to help keep the momentum going.  The 2016 Sea Party work of grassroots voter education and advocacy for healthy seas is going to cost more money than any project in Blue Frontier’s proud 13 year history.

-Traveling and inflating a life-size whale costs $1,000.

– One thousand T-shirts costs $4,000.

– Five thousand yard signs costs $10,000.

– An on the ground organizer traveling throughout the Southeast working with local Sea Party activists will cost at least $25,000.

Your support can stop the threat of offshore oil and protect the blue in our red, white and blue.  What we’ve accomplished to date with the few resources we’ve been given over the years has been amazing.  Check out our varied programs on our newly updated website at www.bluefront.org.

Then make a generous tax-deductible contribution to Blue Frontier.  You can go online to donate or send a check to: Blue Frontier PO Box 19367 Washington DC 20036.  Put ‘Sea Party’ on the memo line if you’d like.  And thank you for the ongoing support you provide from sea to shining sea.

Best fishes and a happy new year from the Blue Frontier team including myself Kathleen, Lauren, Margo and the board,

David Helvarg