Ocean Alive

Raquel Gaspar is one of a kind. Her deep love for the ocean is impossible to ignore. Her passion is fierce and mighty - and incredibly inspiring.

We first met Raquel as part of a side event during the UN Ocean Conference. Her organisation, Ocean Alive was hosting a seagrass snorkel in the Sado Estuary, about an hour south of Lisbon. We jumped at the chance to join them alongside a whole host of other ocean activists, policymakers & media folk.

But the day was busy and the Ocean Alive team were hosting such a big group that we left feeling like we’d just had a taste of all the amazing stuff they were doing.

So this summer, as part of a three-stop tour of Spain and Portugal for our long-time collab partners SeaTrees we had the opportunity to spend a day with Raquel and team member, marine biologist Luis Almeida.

We met at Setubal harbour and headed out to the seagrass meadows of Cambalhao - in the estuary overlooking the Parque Natural da Arrabida.

It felt like such a privilege to be able to spend time on the boat - just talking to Raquel, learning more about the work and getting a better understanding of the impact they are having in their local community.

Ocean Alive work closely with local fishers, tourism operators and schools to raise awareness of the ecosystem services that seagrass meadows provide. Their Keepers of the Sea program currently supports 18 women from the Sado Rivers’ fishing community in their role of ‘sea guides’, agents of change and citizen scientists.

We stopped just shy of a beautiful sandbank and unloaded our wetsuits & fins, excited to jump into the ocean and immerse ourselves in Raquels’ blue backyard.

An interview with Raquel in the dunes wrapped up our time on the island but we managed to sneak in a quick chat with Luis — and immediately recognised the ripple effect of Raquels’ passion and how young Portuguese ocean conservationists, like Luis are eager to follow in her footsteps and help regenerate their coastline.

As we headed back to Setubal we were able to use the drone to capture some content that the OA team will use to monitor the seagrass growth. On arrival at the harbour, we caught up with Alex, a local boat tour operator whose company Rotas do Sal incorporates environmental education & stewardship into their tours, thanks to training they’ve done with Ocean Alive.

At the heart of this story is one woman who knew she could make a difference. The catalyst for a movement that is protecting a coastline and the livelihoods of its local community.