The sturgeon is Georgia’s indicator species because it connects to the three most pressing Sustainable Development Goals, which are SDG 7, 14,and 12. The sturgeon is an endangered species because of its demand on the black market for caviar. Upholding SDG 14, life below water, is important to preserving the species since it lives in water. Since Georgia is shifting towards renewable energy such as hydroelectric, it’simportant to keep SDG 7 affordable and clean energy in mind. Sturgeon have been impacted by overfishing so it’s key to practice SDG 12, responsible production and consumption to sustain the species.

The Big Leaf Mahogany Tree (Swietenia macrophylla) is a prominent ecological indicator in Belize. The species serves as a unit which sequesters carbon, mitigates natural disaster impacts, and reduces deforestation. Because of this, environmental conservation initiatives which align with SDG 13 Climate Action have become a central priority to the country of Belize. The Climate Action SDG is subject to goals such as strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity to climate disasters and integrating climate change messages into policy and planning. Therefore, it is important to explore the role the Big Leaf Mahogany Tree has on both the drivers and interventions of SDG 13 within Belize.

Glaciers make up a large fraction of the cryosphere, yet with a warming planet – how exactly will the dynamics of these massive land systems react? The dynamics of surging glaciers might be able to give scientists a better answer to that. Glaciers tend to surge when there is excess meltwater at the base, causing the masses to act in a volatile way. Being able to identify surging glaciers through geomorphological mapping is essential to studying the behavior of these land systems. A geomorphological map of the landscape of the Gandbreen glacier – Svalbard, Norway, provides spatial evidence of previous surging events.

Plastic production has experienced an exponential growth in the last decades, with a current production of more than 350 million tons of plastic worldwide. It is known that around 5 to 10% of this plastic ends up in the marine environment. Plastic marine pollution possesses a threat tomarine life, ecosystems, human health, and economy. In Peru, the biggest cities are located by the sea, which means a big risk of plastic waste entering the ocean, enhanced by an inefficient waste management. Therefore, the present research project assesses the presence, sources and impacts of plastic pollution in the Peruvian coast.

My scientific poster outlines the main conservation issues facing the Planet’s largest Ray species, the Oceanic Manta Ray (Mobula birstrosis) as an under pinning to the production of a conservation strategy to protect this species. By catch and Manta Ray fisheries are the predominant issues and this poster outlines a three faceted approach of research, eco-tourism and fishery regulations as important aspects of the strategy which need to be undertaken through international cooperation.

The poster outlines these major issues and points of action needed to tackle the issues and provides insight into necessary future conservation work that must be done.