Today, February 27th, is World NGO Day, and that’s exactly what we are: an organization born out of commitment and passion for conservation.
To celebrate and honor our journey, we want to share a text written by our dear Co-founder, Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, on the occasion of our 15th anniversary back in 2013. This piece is part of a compilation that reflects on our history, achievements, challenges, and perspectives at that time.
Surely, more than one of you has it printed in your library. Success Stories: A Tribute to the Sea Turtle Community of Northwestern Mexico—and this text appears on the second page as a prologue. For those who don’t, here it is; take a moment to read and immerse yourself in this inspiring story that has made, makes, and will continue to make history.
Today, we wanted to bring back these words that remind us how this NGO was born, why, and for what purpose, told by J. Nichols himself. We know that these words will resonate with each of you in different ways and touch different corners of your being. Above all, we hope they inspire you to keep doing what we do.
Enjoy!
Dignity
Twenty years ago, as graduate students, Jeff Seminoff and I presented doctoral research proposals to a group of eminent scientists, experts, and advisors: build a diverse sea turtle conservation network, fill the vast holes in our existing knowledge, and strategically communicate the solutions to restore sea turtle populations in northwest Mexico.
They said it was too ambitious, that it was too late for the sea turtles, and that there was no support for such a project.
These renowned experts told us we should skip the turtles and study fish. We disagreed and quietly suggested that the proposed project was viable.
When asked to support that assertion with hard data, we had none.
“What makes you think it’s worth wasting time with sea turtles?”
“Dignity.” Was my response. Jeff agreed.
The dignity of the men and women we had met who live with the sea, along its coast, and survive alongside the turtles would drive the change and save the turtles.
It was an absurd notion at the time that turtle hunters, fishers, and consumers might be the ones to save them too.
But in 1999, a few dozen of us—fishers, biologists, business people—gathered in Loreto to get our minds around the situation at hand. It was grim. Sea turtle populations were in free fall, and the black market for their eggs, meat, skin, and shells was thriving despite strict regulations.
We named ourselves the Grupo Tortuguero and vowed to fight together for the sea turtles. We agreed that everyone had a vote and the same voice and that anyone who shared our mission was welcome. We decided to meet each year in Loreto on the last weekend of January, respecting the schedules of fishermen and their families.
Each year we gathered like migrating turtles to their nesting beach. And each year there were more of us, with more successes and research to share.
We linked with colleagues in Sonora, Michoacán, and Japan. We invited convicted poachers, governors, and rock stars. We ate, hugged, and danced.
As we grew in numbers, those resistant to change protested. They called us names, spread lies, said that we were a turtle cult, and threatened our members. But the group still grew. New projects were born all along the coast. Black turtles, olive ridleys, hawksbills, loggerheads, and leatherbacks were protected.
The numbers of sea turtles in the ocean and on the beaches began to rise. People noticed. Sea turtle eco-tourism was born.
Change started happening, one person at a time. Now in 2013, we celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of the Grupo Tortuguero. And we recognize that our simple model has inspired our brothers and sisters around the world to protect their oceans.
By all estimates, we are just halfway to our goal, and many of the same challenges facing sea turtles—bycatch, poaching, development, and pollution—remain. But protecting sea turtles in northwest Mexico is becoming generational and cool. People know that turtles are worth more alive than dead and that they represent ocean health, responsible fishing, and resilient communities. In northwestern Mexico, people and sea turtles are, and always have been, intimately and intricately connected.
Grupo Tortuguero was, and remains, a very good idea: like-minded people hardworking together to ensure that sea turtles persist in a healthy ocean.
You can’t stop good ideas whose time has come. And you can’t stop the Tortugueros.
