Tickets are available at the following locations in San Diego through April 11th:

• The Linkery  - 3794 30th St. (North Park, 92104)
• El Take it Easy – 3926 30th St. (North Park, 92104)
• Sea Rocket Bistro – 3382 30th St. (North Park, 92104)
• Point Loma Outfitting – 2885 Perry Rd. (Point Loma, 92106)

We at Treehuggers International are excited to once again be the media sponsor for the Pro Peninsula Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Wednesday, April 13th from 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm, at the Town and Country Resort in San Diego’s Mission Valley.

International Sea Turtle Symposium

Pro Peninsula is a San Diego-based organization best known for their efforts to save wild sea turtles in the waters of Baja California, and is dedicated to strengthening efforts to protect the natural environment of the Baja peninsula.

As Pro Peninsula has grown, so have the venues for their annual presentation of the Wild and Scenic Film Festival, and this year the festival will be happening in conjunction with the International Sea Turtle Symposium, being held at the Town and Country Resort.

The actual date for the film festival is Wednesday, April 13th, from 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm, but the International Sea Turtle Symposium will be happening from April 12th to the 15th. If you’ve never been to the Wild and Scenic Film Festival, it’s a great opportunity to see some groundbreaking environmental films way ahead of time and actually in the cinema, the way they were meant to be seen.

Baby sea turtle shortly after hatching.

Ocean Foundation and Marine Turtle Ecology

Several years ago, we first welcomed Pro Peninsula co-founder and director Kama Dean to Treehuggers International, and it is a pleasure to welcome her back to the show.A former manager of the Grupo Tortuguero de las Californias, or Sea Turtle Conservation Network of the Californias, Kama presided over the group’s monitoring, education and network building programs. With Pro Peninsula now a fund with The Ocean Foundation, Kama continues her leadership role with Pro Peninsula and serves as a Program Officer with The Ocean Foundation, and is profiled in the new book Sea Voices.

New to Treehuggers International is Dr. Jeffrey Seminoff, a marine ecologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in San Diego, and leader of the Marine Turtle Ecology and Assessment Program. Dr. Seminoff works with federal agencies to update marine turtle status assessments for the Endangered Species Act, is Adjunct Faculty at Indiana-Purdue University and the University of Florida, and was instrumental in bringing the International Sea Turtle Symposium to San Diego for its first-ever west coast meeting.

Pro Peninsula Communications and Marketing Manager Giuliana Schroeder also makes a return appearance on this edition of Treehuggers International, to go over some of the films on tap for this year’s Wild and Scenic Film Festival.

Doors open at 6:00, and the film festival gets underway promptly at 6:30. Tickets are $15, or $25 for the VIP package, which includes a t-shirt and invitation to the April 14th VIP party at Point Loma Outfitting. The Town and Country Resort is located at 500 Hotel Circle North in San Diego, in the 92108 zip code.

• April 10th : Sunday Film Night Social at El Take It Easy in North Park, 6:00 to 8:30 pm.
• April 13th: Wild and Scenic Film Festival, 5:45 to 10:30 pm, including a community fair, silent auction, and films beginning promptly at 6:30 pm.
• April 14th: Wild and Scenic VIP Party at Point Loma Outfitting, 6:00 to 9:00 pm.

For more information call Pro Peninsula at (619) 574-6643.

Sunset at Laguna San Ignacio, El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve.

More about this post at:

• Pro Peninsula Wild and Scenic Film Festival
• About Pro Peninsula
• 31st Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation
• Southwest Fisheries Science Center, NOAA staff profile for Dr. Jeffrey Seminoff
• Grupo Tortugeuro de las Californias
• The Ocean Foundation
• Point Loma Outfitting
• Town and Country Resort
• Pro Peninsula Adopt-A-Sea Turtle
• Kama Dean: Sea Turtle Activist, interview from Sea Voices
• U.S. Moves to List Loggerhead Turtles As Endangered (Los Angeles Times; 3/11/10)
• U.S. Makes Moves to List the Loggerhead Turtle As Endangered (Current TV; 3/11/10)
• 35 San Diego Leaders Under 35 (San Diego News Network; 1/14/10)
• 3,000 Dead Sea Turtles In Baja California (San Francisco Chronicle; 10/15/08)
• High Mortality of Endangered Sea Turtles In Baja California (Science Daily; 10/14/08)
• Slow, Steady Wins Conservation Race (San Diego Union-Tribune; 1/19/08)
• Loggerhead Sea Turtles Threatened By Small Scale Fishing Operations (ENN; 10/17/07)
• Can Mexico’s Wild Baja Endure New Marinas? (National Geographic Traveler; 9/12/03)
• Baja Turtle Blues (National Wildlife Federation; 8/1/03)
• Activists: Stop Easter Sea Turtle Slaughter (NPR; 3/27/02)

Loggerhead Turtle at home in the sea.

Pro Peninsula volunteer Rachel Tuck makes friends with a gray whale.

Screenings are March 23rd and March 25th from 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Ultra Star Cinema at Hazard Center, located in San Diego’s Mission Valley.

Treehuggers International is thrilled to be on board for the second year in a row as the media sponsor for the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival, presented locally in San Diego by Pro Peninsula.

A fund within the larger Ocean Foundation, Pro Peninsula was created in 2001 by Kama Dean and Chris Pesenti to strengthen efforts protecting the natural environment of Baja California, and in particular, reaching out to fishing communities along the length of the peninsula about the need to protect endangered sea turtle populations and safeguard the seasonal passage of gray whales along the Pacific coast.

While still largely wild, Baja California faces particular threats to its unique environments, and the need remains for strong environmental advocacy to promote social awareness and environmental participation, while promoting sustainable development alternatives. Working with local communities and a pool of local fishermen and citizens, Pro Peninsula continues to advance the cause of ocean conservation along the Baja coast, and whereas 10 years ago there were only two similar environmental organizations active in Baja, today there are near 30.

Stopping by Treehuggers International to talk about this year’s Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival is Giuliana Schroeder, the Communications and Marketing Manager for Pro Peninsula; and a long-time Pro Peninsula volunteer, naturalist, ocean enthusiast, and co-emcee of this year’s Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival, Rachel Tuck.

This year the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival moves to the Ultra Star Cinemas at Hazard Center in San Diego’s Mission Valley, located along the San Diego River just steps from the San Diego Trolley’s Hazard Center stop, and instead of one night of films, the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival has grown to two nights: March 23rd and March 25th. Screenings run from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, and are $15 per night, or both nights for $25.  VIP packages are also available in conjunction with Point Loma Outfitting, at $30 for one night or $50 for both nights.

(originally posted March 6th)

Julio Solas releases a marker off the Baja coast as part of sea turtle monitoring efforts.

More about this post at:

• Pro Peninsula Wild and Scenic Page
• About Pro Peninsula
• Point Loma Outfitting
• The Ocean Foundation
• Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival
• Pro Peninsula E-Bulletin, February 2010 edition details current initiatives and festival schedule
• 35 San Diego Leaders Under 35, includes profile of Kama Dean (San Diego News Network; 1/14/10)
• Slow, Steady Wins Conservation Race (San Diego Union-Tribune; 1/19/08)

The Sea of Cortez from the Loreto coastline, along Baja California's eastern shore.

Treehuggers International once again extends thanks to Pro Peninsula for extending the media sponsorship invitation for the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival. A genuine honor for Treehuggers International to be associated with such a great set of films, echoing so many sentinents near and dear to the concept of Treehuggers International.

Our most recent conversation with Pro Peninsula Executive Director Kama Dean details the success of Pro Peninsula’s Adopt A Sea Turtle program, Pro Peninsula’s overall mission and outreach to Baja fishing communities, and some of the remote locations along the Baja coastline where Pro Peninsula operates.

More about this post at:

• Pro Peninsula
• Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival
• Adopt A Sea Turtle
• Slow, Steady Wins Conservation Race (San Diego Union-Tribune; 1/19/08)