On March 11, 2023, the conference "The sea" took place at the Royal Yacht Club in Cork, Ireland, organized by Irish Sailing, with the collaboration of Union Chandlery, Marine and Yacht Supplies, Cruising Association of Ireland and Kilrush Marina.
The conference dealt with topics such as Atlantic crossing, seabed mapping, offshore sailing, orcas... Mónica González, a CEMMA/GTOA biologist, participated in this activity, speaking about the biology, behavior of orcas and, above all, the interactions that they have been produced since 2020.
The presentation had more than 100 people where there was a lot of interest and participation from the public. There was a very positive response, where possible solutions to this new challenge were discussed. It should be noted that many of the suggestions involved modifying our behavior and naval engineering, demonstrating that there is respect and admiration for this species.
Scientific dissemination and social awareness are a crucial part of being able to conserve and protect endangered species, so in the FriendSHIP: orcas project we work to reach the largest possible population with scientific information to try to achieve a change of attitudes favorable to the conservation of the marine environment.