by Water Revolution Foundation | 8 Jun 2023 | News
On this World Ocean Day, as we come together to honour and protect our precious marine ecosystems, it is paramount that the superyacht sector stand united in support of its biggest stakeholder and take collective action in the form of structural, industry-wide commitment.
To translate this commitment into tangible action and results, we are proud to announce Water Revolution Foundation’s newest programme: Ocean Assist. Ocean Assist will provide a return on superyachting’s landmark investment in ocean conservation, prioritising projects and adopting scientific tools that are urgently needed to safeguard the oceans. This will enable the sector to maximise financial (and non-financial) resources and embrace nature-based solutions. “It must be clear that yachting’s promising efforts to reduce its environmental footprint are only half of the challenges faced to future-proof the industry,” says Robert van Tol, Executive Director. “The other half is protecting the healthy ocean for which our sector directly relies on – we can no longer take its pristine conditions for granted to provide the lifestyle that superyachting sells. The Ocean Assist programme aims to structurally reinvest in the ocean through scientific guidance and support by an entire maritime sector, resulting in a community of true stewards of the sea.”
The Ocean Assist investment fund coming soon to the industry
Through the Ocean Assist Fund, appropriate criteria will be used by an independent scientific advisory board to select marine conservation and restoration projects to allocate funds from the yachting community. This fund is unique for being the only marine conservation initiative aimed to be structurally supported by an entire maritime industry, not a single organisation or small coalition of like-minded companies.
Ocean Assist will raise awareness and commitment across the yachting community, transform financial support for ocean conservation into a business proposition and investment for the well-being of the planet, and spearhead a new age of regenerative development to conserve and revive our marine ecosystems. “This programme represents a vital step towards a regenerative future for our oceans. By investing in blue carbon ecosystems, we can restore ocean health and create a legacy of environmental custodianship for generations to come,” shares our vice-chair and initiator, Dr. Vienna Eleuteri.
Ocean Strategy for Yachting
The significance of implementing such a programme was underscored last month in Hamburg, where top industry leaders and esteemed ocean scientists came together for a strategic discussion on the way forward for yachting and science to join forces – the outcome being a mandate from the industry pledging to prioritise sector-wide, coordinated reinvestment in the oceans, alongside mitigation. The strategic session took place alongside a workshop attended by leading ocean conservation scientists, who spent the week nominating 43 new regions for protection in the North-East Atlantic as part of the Important Marine Mammal Areas (IMMA) programme. As Ocean Assist’s first initiative, IMMA’s North-East Atlantic project is entirely funded by the yachting community and a valuable demonstration of what future projects might entail.
A coordinated approach
It is due time that collective action is taken – the entire yachting community must gear up for structural commitment both in terms of support and adoption of results, moving beyond charity or philanthropy in favour of an industry-wide effort to secure our common future.
Learn more about Ocean Assist.
by Water Revolution Foundation | 12 Apr 2023 | News
We are delighted to welcome Alexey Shifman, Programme Director, to the Water Revolution team.
As a naval architect with over 13 years of experience and a Master’s degree specialized in cruise liner design, fluid mechanics, and structural optimization, Alexey is driven by a passion for creativity. Alongside his naval architecture background, he also served as CEO of a 3D printing start-up, spearheading the company’s innovation efforts and discovering new ways to advance this emerging technology. Alexey believes in the power of creativity to create a sustainable future for the superyacht industry and is committed to finding cutting-edge solutions to the sector’s challenges.
A warm welcome to the team, Alexey!
by Water Revolution Foundation | 16 Jan 2023 | News
It is a pleasure to have Jaime Barros, Junior Marine Engineer, join the Water Revolution team.
From sunny Lisbon, Jaime grew up sailing and has ever since nurtured a deep love and respect for the ocean. He moved to the Netherlands at a young age with the motivation to pursue a bachelor’s and master’s program in Marine Engineering at the Delft University of Technology. His Master’s thesis, titled “Modeling the Electric Power Consumption of a Yacht,” was written in cooperation with Water Revolution Foundation and has been instrumental in the development of the Yacht Environmental Transparency Index (YETI). Recently graduated, Jaime feels compelled to leave his contribution for a better tomorrow for future generations to come and wants to ensure his skills and knowledge are put to good use. On a personal level, he’s passionate about wild camping, photography, and weird science facts.
Happy to have you onboard, Jaime! Welcome to the Revolution.
by Water Revolution Foundation | 4 Nov 2022 | News
We are thrilled to have Gigi Migliazzo joining the Water Revolution team as a Marketing Executive.
With a Bachelor’s degree in International Communications & Media, Gigi is passionate about global marketing, content creation, and sustainability. Her prior experiences include managing the brands for a plant-based food distributor based in the Benelux region and building sustainable business ventures to combat ocean pollution in Indonesia. Having grown up between Melbourne, Australia, and California, USA, she has always had a love for the ocean and is dedicated to promoting its conservation and restoration.
Welcome aboard, Gigi! We look forward to the journey ahead in making the superyacht industry sustainable together.
by Water Revolution Foundation | 2 Nov 2022 | News
As strategic partner for this year’s The Superyacht Forum and METSTRADE, we are eager to share our additions to these events. From the launch of YETI 1.0 and the Superyacht Sustainability Route to panel discussions and keynote presentations, we have been preparing a number of initiatives to showcase throughout the week.
The Superyacht Forum will feature a presentation by chairman Henk de Vries III and board member Peter Lürssen on Monday 14 November from 11:30-13:00, where they will discuss the future of yachting and sustainable developments in the industry. This will be followed by a breakout session at 14:30 pre-launching version 1.0 of the Yacht Environmental Transparency Index (YETI) to delegates of the forum.
Visit our stand at the Superyacht Sustainability Route
During METSTRADE, we are proud to be introducing the first edition of the Superyacht Sustainability Route, an initiative rewarding the sustainable solutions that have been proven as such through a third-party verification process. The starting point of the route will feature the Water Revolution Foundation stand at C01 in the hallway next to the Superyacht Pavilion, which will describe said process and point visitors toward the verified solutions.
Discussing the future of superyacht design & LCA-based verification
An expert panel has been organised in collaboration with KNTVS to discuss sustainable yacht design on Wednesday 16 November at 14:00 in room D202 situated in the Elicium building. The following day at 12:30, we will be giving a presentation concerning the Life Cycle Assessment and how it can be applied to the yachting sector, in addition to unveiling a new course in our education programme covering LCA-based decision making. This event will take place in the central METSTRADE Theatre.
YETI 1.0 launch
On the final day of METSTRADE at 13:30, we are thrilled to officially present and launch YETI 1.0. Those who attend will be given the opportunity to witness the release of this highly-anticipated tool and hear a panel of YETI participants review this unique collective journey with an audience Q&A session. Seats are limited so RSVP here to attend the event.
We look forward to seeing you at The Superyacht Forum and/or METSTRADE later this month. Should you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
