While onboard PONANT’s Le Boréal in early 2020, Deb Corbett, PONANT’s General Manager Sales & Marketing Asia Pacific, experienced first hand an example of the PONANT Foundation’s commitment to sustainability, witnessing an NGO Conservation International research group studying the behaviour of humpback whales in Antarctica.
“It was both a privilege and inspiring to have been onboard with the Conservation International research team comprising six scientists from Australia and New Zealand, who spent three weeks in the Antarctic collecting and analysing humpback whale information for the scientific community,” explained Deb.
“Far from being segregated, being on a small ship like Le Boréal, we met and talked with them whether on deck, in the bar or at regular daily expedition team updates. Everyone was really interested in what they had done during the day. Friendly and approachable, they were all genuinely excited to share their knowledge with us – how many whales did you see? Did you get any recordings worth noting for the research? Tell us all about what you do and why you do it and how this is going to affect your understanding of these amazing creatures and their changing environment……”
- The research effort resulted in 60 whales being listed and 16 hours of underwater recordings made in order to help develop a better understanding of their songs and the significance to their feeding behaviour.
- An inspiring 6-minute video by renowned conservation filmmaker Richard Sidey captures the essence of Antarctica, the whales and the research undertaking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=JITYw4BOisY
“Being onboard and talking with the researchers created an educated environmental perspective and insight, deepened our understanding and really did enrich us all. We had discussions about the oceans, the land, government policies – it was an intellectual connection which stimulated you in a completely different way – looking at these people thinking they have dedicated their life to research and we are now a part of it,” concluded Deb.
