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The moment conservation becomes personal: Stories highlighting the human heart of wildlife protection

Media release – 2 April 2026

Two people measuring and calming a sea turtle on a beach at sunrise
Two citizen scientists measuring and calming a sea turtle on a beach at sunrise

Around the world, ordinary people are stepping onto the frontlines of wildlife conservation. Not as tourists, but as citizen scientists, they help track species, collect critical data and support conservation of wild animals and places that would otherwise not be possible.

The new 2025 Annual Magazine from award-winning NGO Biosphere Expeditions brings these stories together, revealing the people behind global wildlife research and the real impact they are having in the field.

The Magazine celebrates the ‘Human Factor’. The volunteers, local communities and scientists whose lives have been touched by working on the frontlines of wildlife conservation.

Cover of the 2025 Annual Magazine "The Human Factor"
Cover of the 2025 Annual Magazine “The Human Factor”
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Azores expedition 2026: Baleen baptism

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

A group of people sitting around a table
Group 2

Welcome to group 2 – our most diverse (in terms of nationalities) this year. This includes our Singaporean quartet and our local student placement from Portugal.

Three people sitting in a boat on the ocean, looking at the water
On the lookout for cetaceans
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Azores expedition 2026: Fluking festival

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

A group of people standing on a boat smiling into the camera
Group 1

Successful sightings have continued for our last two days at sea.

Tuesday continued the theme of blue, fin and minke whales. We have now had more minke encounters in the past four days than I have had in eight previous whale and dolphin research expeditions to the Azores. Calmer seas definitely help with sightings! The now obligatory common dolphin encounter rounded off another great day at sea.

For people standing on the bow of a boat looking for whales
On the lookout for cetaceans
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Azores expedition 2026: Seaward

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

For people standing on the deck of a small boat, holding onto the railing, looking for whales
Out on survey

Our whale and dolphin research expedition has put to sea. It was choppy, but the team were delighted to be on survey.

We were soon rewarded with sightings of common dolphins south of Faial. We did try to go south of Pico, following up on reports of baleen whales, but the sea state and wind had other ideas!

A volcano jutting out of the ocean
Mount Pico
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Azores expedition 2026: Wet & windy start

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

Rainbow over Horta, Azores
Rainbow over Horta, Azores

It was great to welcome our first whale & dolphin research team (and most of their luggage) to get the 2026 expedition underway.

Team 1 seems to have endless enthusiasm for the days ahead. We have been able to complete the normal project briefings, presentations and equipment training over the first couple of days… and the missing bag also arrived. Success all round.

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‘Seeing the environmental and human impacts on coral reefs made me want to work to ensure the longevity of their biodiversity’


At just 27 years old, Tess Kneebone has already travelled extensively – from Costa Rica and Mexico to France, Morocco and across the United States. So, when a competition to join a marine conservation expedition in the Maldives with Biosphere Expeditions appeared on her Instagram feed, it was no surprise that she jumped at the opportunity.

What Tess could not have anticipated was just how deeply the experience would affect her: it reshaped her ambitions, strengthened her sense of purpose and introduced her to conservation in its most tangible form.

‘I’ve never felt more like myself than working on coral reef surveys with other ocean lovers,’ she reflects, her enthusiasm tangible.

Tess Kneebone standing on the deck of a boat, smiling into the camera
Tess Kneebone
Continue reading “‘Seeing the environmental and human impacts on coral reefs made me want to work to ensure the longevity of their biodiversity’”
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Azores expedition 2026: Arrival

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

A blue whale swimming in the ocean
Blue whale

Sometimes the hardest part of an expedition is starting, and this naturally means departing. Which isn’t always straightforward.

I was aiming to leave home on Friday 13th. That day, I woke up to a blanket of snow, followed by a power outage and then our first lifeboat call-out of the year on Loch Ness. First steps are not always easy!

A whale blowing air and water
Blue whale blow
Blue wail tail as it dives
Blue whale fluking
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Azores expedition 2026: Preparations and heading ‘home’

Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles

A pod of dolphins in front of Pico island
A pod of dolphins in front of Pico island

Planning has been underway for several months and next week the Azores Expedition begins.

This marks the 20th expedition in the Azores. So, it’s time for the initial introductions. I am Craig Turner and I’ll be your expedition leader.  

Expedition leader Craig Turner standing at Horta harbour, with yachts in the background
Craig Turner
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How to Protect Marine Life: Small Actions That Make a Big Difference

A pod of dolphins swimming across a coral reef

Imagine standing on a beach at sunrise. The ocean looks powerful. Endless. Untouchable.

Waves roll in as they always have. The horizon stretches beyond sight. It feels impossible that something so vast could ever be fragile.

And yet, beneath the surface, change is happening.

Coral reefs are bleaching. Fish populations are declining. Plastic is entering marine food chains. Ocean temperatures are rising.

What happens in the ocean does not stay in the ocean: it affects climate stability, food systems, biodiversity, and ultimately, us.

The question many people ask is: How can I protect marine life?

The answer is both simpler and more empowering than it may seem.

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From Citizen to Top-Notch Science: Biosphere Expeditions Celebrates Recognition in ‘Nature Communications’, in Paper About the Status of Coral Reefs Worldwide

Media release – 17 February 2026

Biosphere Expeditions volunteers recording coral reef data in Musandam, Oman (c) Kelvin Aitken

17 February 2026 – Biosphere Expeditions, the award-winning wildlife conservation NGO, is proud to announce that citizen science data from its Maldives and Oman coral reef projects have been used and acknowledged in a recent peer-reviewed paper published in Nature Communications, one of the world’s leading scientific journals. 

The paper warns that ‘the impacts of ocean warming on coral reefs are accelerating, with the near certainty that ongoing warming will cause large-scale, possibly irreversible, degradation of these essential ecosystems’.

Continue reading “From Citizen to Top-Notch Science: Biosphere Expeditions Celebrates Recognition in ‘Nature Communications’, in Paper About the Status of Coral Reefs Worldwide”