One Island, One Ocean

Ernest Shackleton meets Patrick O’Brian meets An Inconvenient Truth in an amazing sea voyage.

On May 31, 2009, a committed team of sailors, scientists, teachers and conservationists joined forces on a voyage that was vast in scope and ambition but launched under the simplest of ideas: The continents of North and South America are a single island, surrounded by a shared ocean, and with a common set of challenges, communities, issues, and solutions. To put it in the simplest terms, we creatures of the land are utterly dependent on the sea around us, and we’d better take care of it, or it won’t take care of us. This book tells the story of that amazing adventure, and sounds a call to action for everyone who loves this planet.

In a journey that took 13 months, the Ocean Watch circumnavigated the Americas, documenting the beauty that exists, the peoples who rely on our oceans, and the changes that are happening all too fast. This book can be read any number of ways:

. . . as an exciting seafaring adventure, with storms on the high seas, polar bears, and daring escapes from icy danger.

. . . as a beautifully photographed appreciation of the beauty of the Americas—our wildlife, our coastal cities, and our proud, tenacious natives.

. . . as a global warning, documenting the dangers of climate change and the ways our world is changing forever.

The ship made landfall in 53 places around the continents and did presentations and outreach in each. In many of these places, there are potential special sales opportunities (museums, yacht clubs, educational centers). Places visited include:

Seattle (starting point)

British Columbia

Alaska

The Yukon Territories

The Northwest Territories

Nunavet

Newfoundland

Massachusetts

Rhode Island

New York

South Carolina

Florida

Puerto Rico

St. Lucia

French Guiana

Brazil

Uruguay

Argentina

The Falklands

Chile

Ecuador

Costa Rica

Mexico

California

Oregon

. . . and, back to Seattle