The first edition of the Bluewave awards, presented yesterday at the Barcelona Maritime Museum, awarded marine biologists Manu San Félix, Kike Ballesteros and Enric Sala. These awards, organized by the Bluewave Alliance – a non-profit initiative promoted by Isdin laboratories – support projects "that aim to restore the health and beauty of the Mediterranean", according to the organizers themselves.
San Félix received the Bluewave Public Awareness Award "for giving visibility and raising awareness about the main treasures of the Mediterranean and mobilizing society"; Ballesteros was awarded the Bluewave Science Award "for excellence in scientific research that contributes to marine conservation and restoration, and finally Sala was awarded the Bluewave Award Lifetime Achievement for his Pristine Seas project, "which promotes the creation of marine reserves where life can thrive".
In addition, the five winners of the first edition of the Amamos el Mediterráneo photography and video competition, whose main objective is "to make citizens fall in love with the Mediterranean Sea, as well as to contribute to social awareness" were also announced on the need to take care of the seas", argue the organizers. The winning images of this competition can be seen at the Bluewave Expo, which will be installed until June 18 on Illa Diagonal in Barcelona.
The Bluewave Alliance also organized the first Bluewave Symposium throughout the day yesterday, a day dedicated to getting to know the jewels of the Mediterranean and discovering how to protect them. The symposium, which took place at the AXA convention center in the Catalan capital, aims to achieve, according to its organizers, "that companies, scientists and entrepreneurs join forces to protect this sea". "Companies have a great opportunity to be part of the solution to living in a sustainable world", said Juan Naya, CEO of Isdin.
Marine biologist and prize-winner Manu San Félix, from the Vellmarí Association and National Geographic collaborator, introduced attendees to the jewels hidden in the Mediterranean. The scientist Emma Cebrián and the marine biologist Kike Ballesteros, another of the awardees, moderated two round tables with world experts to address the habitats of the Mediterranean and the species that live there. And for his part, Enric Sala, marine biologist at the head of the Pristine Seas project and who was another of the awardees, presented his marine conservation project on a global scale to the audience.
The Bluewave symposium also made known some of the initiatives of the Seareg Foundation, Gravity Wave or the Vellmarí Association, among others, the so-called "sustainability entrepreneurs", which made visible the threats facing the Mediterranean and the actions that can help save him.
