Unable to swim and afraid of the deep, Aunofo Havea Funaki began her seafaring life at age 25. Seventeen years later she became the first licensed female captain in Polynesia. As she reconciles and honors her father’s whaling heritage, she is transforming how younger generations in Tonga relate to the sea through ecotourism instead of slaughter. “The whales connect us to our history.” —BB

In the Gulf of California a small porpoise, the vaquita, which can only be found there, has been reduced to 15 animals. They are bycatch trapped in nets for an equally endangered fish, the totobua, captured for their bladders. Two British graphic design brothers were asked by the Sea Shepherd organization to create relevant silkscreen artwork. They decided to see the porpoise themselves, came to Mexico—and made this film for positive change. —KH

The deep sea is our least understood ecosystem. Home to millions of species, many undiscovered, it regulates vital systems and stores vast quantities of carbon dioxide. It also holds a trove of minerals worth trillions of dollars that the mining industry is racing to exploit. Looming is one of the greatest environmental threats the ocean has ever faced. A small island nation holds the key. —BB

In Popisi on the Sulawesi coast of Indonesia, the Bajo people, who spend most of their time on the water, have learned sustainable ways to catch octopus while preserving the reef where they live. No more crowbars, poison and explosives to bag the eight-armed creatures, their main commercial catch. Instead, as a Bajo leader explains, together with other coastal villages, they have set up marine protected areas, seasonal no take zones, and areas for tourism and aquaculture. —SJPH