Out of every 1,000 small sea turtles that hatch, only one will reach adulthood. Follow the experience of a young volunteer in a marine turtle conservation program in the state of Quintana Roo along the Mexican Caribbean. Through her eyes we will get to know the work carried out by the Xcacel Sea Turtle Camp, and daily effort of the entire team to protect and care for the nests of this species, to ensure that their newborns can reach the sea. —AB

To help struggling coral reefs around the world, an international team of scientists is planting over a million new coral colonies. They perform the coral equivalent of in vitro fertilization—and watch the corals grow. —KH

Coastal mangrove forests are buffers between land and sea, playing the critical role of protecting coastal communities from storms, wind and erosion. Largely ignored and misunderstood, these critical ecosystems don't just affect local communities and wildlife, but their critical ecosystem services reach far beyond. On an island in Southern Thailand mangroves deforestation has continued in the last 50 years. This film shows how local people have been affected, and highlights efforts to restore these habitats to secure a more sustainable future —GC

Coastal communities are intrinsically connected to the sea and their lives depend on it. This film takes us to the Andaman Coast in Southern Thailand to eliminate the importance of mangrove forests to coastal communities, underpinning the livelihoods of an estimated 210 million people. They store vast amounts of carbon, support a rich biodiversity, provide protein for communities, and replenishing the seas by acting as critical breeding grounds and nurseries for many marine species. Half of the mangroves have been cut down for development of shrimp farms to supply the global seafood demand. The Mangrove Action Project is working to solve this problem by restoring mangrove forests with local communities using a holistic, science-based approach. —GC

Climate change, ghost fishing and human impacts such as plastic pollution threaten the sustainability of a tiny fishing community called Tambaldeg on the western coast of India. Community members mean to prevent it from happening — they clean the beaches year round, collecting 2-3 tons of plastic per year. Community-led turtle conservation has helped to educate those who once ate turtle eggs and encourage them to throw out their old fishing gear into the sea. Conservation must start with the community, not just wait for a government mandate. —GC

Along Peru’s barren coastline seabirds reign. Among them is the adorable Humboldt penguin, which builds its nests in the guano of other birds. Scientists monitor local penguin populations and study the animals’ interactions with fisheries.

Millions of seabirds, thousands of seals: this lonely island in the Bering Sea sits amid one of the richest marine bioregions on the planet. But human impacts have altered it; some seabirds no longer lay eggs, and seal pups starve. Yet God has given the Unangan people the spiritual imperative: “Protect the seals and the seabirds.” And they will! - MJS