Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation
Providing science-based solutions to protect and restore ocean health
Congratulations to all of the students who have won the Science Without Borders® Challenge over the past ten years! We’re proud to showcase all of the first-place winners here — middle and high school students from around the world who …
Despite an earthquake, our resilient J.A.M.I.N. students from Port Antonio and Titchfield High Schools were back in their classrooms and ready to investigate the presence of mangrove disease earlier this year. Our students were the first to research the occurrence of mangrove disease in Port Antonio, Jamaica. They were ready and eager to begin.
Giggles, chatter, and the sound of squeaking rubber boots echoed through the mangrove forest surrounding Alligator Head Foundation, where second year J.A.M.I.N. students from Port Antonio and Titchfield High Schools trudged through the thick mangrove mud to reach their square quadrats. Inside the quadrats, they used scientific equipment to collect data for a variety of environmental parameters such as salinity, dissolved oxygen, and mangrove tree height. They also gathered red mangrove leaves that contain necrotic (dead) tissue. The students later conducted an investigation to see if these leaves contained the presence of a disease-causing fungus.
The last time I was at Titchfield High School in Port Antonio, Jamaica, I took a moment to look out the window at the old cannons that line the walls separating the school from the clear turquoise waters of the Atlantic Ocean. I was there with my colleagues from Alligator Head Foundation to implement the J.A.M.I.N. program. It’s hard not to let my imagination run wild, wondering what happened on this spot centuries ago when, long before it became a high school, it was a well-armed British defensive structure called Fort George. And so, the story begins…
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation would like to introduce you to the first-place high school winner of our Science Without Borders® Challenge art contest, Stacey Lei. Stacey lives in Las Vegas, Nevada where she attends West Career and Technical Academy. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Stacey. She is very humble when talking about her artistic abilities. To my surprise, I learned that Stacey has not had any formal art training. She truly has a natural artistic ability.
Each year I have the pleasure of getting to know the incredibly talented winners of our Science Without Borders® Challenge. With Zoom becoming a popular method of communication during COVID-19, I thought that I would talk to our winners face-to-face …
Between October 26, 2014, and November 24, 2014, the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation conducted a coral reef research, outreach, and education mission to map and characterize the shallow marine habitats and assess the status of coral reefs and coral reef species in the Solomon Islands. On the last days of the mission, the team of divers was able to dive on an active volcano, Tinakula.
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation is thrilled to announce the winners of their annual student art competition, the Science Without Borders® Challenge. Every year, this international contest engages students in ocean conservation through art, encouraging them to create artwork that inspires people to preserve, protect, and restore the world’s oceans and aquatic resources.
Throughout human history, compounds found in plants and animals have been used to heal an array of medical conditions. Traditional medicine, sometimes referred to as “bush” or “folk” medicine, was used to treat ailments prior to the emergence of modern medicine. Many of these customs are still being practiced today. The healing properties of mangroves were first discovered by those practicing traditional medicine. Like with modern-day medicine, many of its uses were discovered through trial and error. When a cure worked, the knowledge and information was passed along from generation to generation.
In January, our second-year J.A.M.I.N. students were tasked with collecting a variety of growth measurements from the mangrove trees that they tagged and identified inside their quadrats. Before we started, I wanted to review the characteristics that are unique to each species of mangroves, a skill they learned previously during the first year of the program. I decided to quiz the students instead. “How can we identify the red mangrove?” I asked. The replies came quickly. “Prop and drop roots.” “Pointy, thick leaves.” “Green bean-like propagules.” All correct. But among the flurry of eager replies, one stood out as several students shouted in unison. “Red tannin!”
