This interactive world map displays current Hope Spots, which are critical marine locations that have been recognized by Mission Blue as needing protection for their importance to the local marine ecosystem.
Each Hope Spot has pictures, videos, and informational text for students to explore.
Teaching Tips
Positives
There is a wealth of information about each of the 100+ Hope Spots.
The map is easy to navigate and can be viewed as 2-D or 3-D.
Additional Prerequisites
The Protected Seas map view displays the Hope Spots alongside existing managed areas and fishing protections.
Click on a Hope Spot on the map to see its name, a picture, and a short text about the place. At the end of this text, there is the option to click "explore this Hope Spot more" to be brought to a web page with more detailed information and additional pictures and videos.
The page for each Hope Spot can also be accessed by finding its name in the alphabetical list on the left side of the map and clicking "Explore."
It will be easiest for students to navigate the map if they scroll down the page and click "view larger map," which opens the map alone in a new tab.
Differentiation
This is a great resource for students to learn about ocean conservation efforts in their area and around the world.
In science classes, students can select a Hope Spot and research how humans have negatively impacted this area and what efforts are underway to protect this location from future damage.
Teachers can challenge students to select a new location to become a Hope Spot. With the help of a local university or organization, students could even submit the nomination to Mission Blue.
One of the goals of the Hope Spots project is to foster hope for the future of our oceans and the planet. Students can discuss their feelings about climate change and how they can remain hopeful.
Other related resources include this article about a Hope Spot in Hong Kong, this video about conservation, and this interactive resource that explores human impacts on ocean ecosystems and restoration opportunities.
Scientist Notes
This is a database that highlights the work of Mission Blue, an organization passionate about marine resource conservation. The page is suitable and recommended for students to explore to understand the role of a healthy ocean in removing atmospheric CO2.
Standards
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
MS-ESS3-3 Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.
HS-ESS3-6 Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Standards
Dimension 2: Geography
D2.Geo.2.6-8 Use maps, satellite images, photographs, and other representations to explain relationships between the locations of places and regions, and changes in their environmental characteristics.
D2.Geo.5.6-8 Analyze the combinations of cultural and environmental characteristics that make places both similar to and different from other places.
Common Core English Language Arts Standards (CCSS.ELA)
Reading: Science & Technical Subjects (6-12)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.6-8.10 By the end of grade 8, read and comprehend science/technical texts in the grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
