Meet creatures from the PH’s top marine hotspot in this local exhibit

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Meet creatures from the PH’s top marine hotspot in this local exhibit
The Mind Museum's exhibit ‘A Glass of The Sea' includes select footage from the CAS Verde Island Passage expedition

(Editor’s note: The following press release is from The Mind Museum)

MANILA, Philippines – The Mind Museum and the California Academy of Sciences (CAS), with the support from the U.S. Government have launched “A Glass of The Sea: An Exhibition on the Coral Triangle” last July 16. 

The exhibition features the astounding biodiversity of the Coral Triangle, particularly the Verde Island Passage between Luzon and the Mindoro Islands, which is dubbed as the world’s “center of marine biodiversity.” (READ: IN PHOTOS: 12 ‘rare and new’ species in Verde Island Passage)

According to Maria Isabel Garcia, curator of The Mind Museum, the exhibit – nicknamed AGoS – was inspired by a scientific study in 2014 which said that scooping a glass of the water from the ocean and examining its contents would reveal much about the variety of life present in that water body. “For ‘A Glass of The Sea’… it meant figuring out how a relatively miniscule space with a few exhibits, can do justice to the enormity of its source and science going on in there,” Garcia added.

Guests will have the opportunity to learn about fascinating marine creatures and how to care for marine life through interactive games, art scupltures, and stunning underwater footage taken from the expeditions conducted by the CAS in the Coral Triangle area.

“A Glass of The Sea” can be experienced through three “short” connected stories: 

  • For the story of the sea, select raw footages of the CAS expedition and of tantalizing creatures are shown – like in an aquarium. 
  • For the story of the science of the sea, The Mind Museum designed original exhibits where physical objects were melded with sensing technology so one can get to know specific creatures up close and get to know them individually. There are also original interactive games that would educate and imbibe the ethic that comes from understanding marine sustainability in terms of fishing, and throwing trash in it.  
  • For the story of your role in the sea, intriguing sculptures that would make one think of our relationship with the Coral Triangle were made. The sculptures are silent but hopefully, will make one not just think but also feel that the choices we make affect our seas.   

There is also a space for educational activities that will encourage appreciation on marine life and conservation. 

This project is supported by the U.S. Embassy Manila’s United States Agency for International Development, under the Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Science Research or PEER Science Grant. The grant enabled local researcher Maria Isabel Garcia, to partner with US-based researcher Dr. Terrence Gosliner of the CAS to work together on achieving ecosystem resilience.

THE AGOS TEAM. L-R: WWF Chairman Vince Perez, The Mind Museum's Maria Isabel Garcia, USAID Mission Director Gloria Steele, USAID's Randy John Vinluan. Photo courtesy of The Mind Museum

“The U.S. Government is pleased to be part of this exhibit that aims to showcase the wealth of the Philippines’ biodiversity and more importantly, to raise awareness on the need to conserve the Coral Triangle to support marine resources and the coastal communities that depend on them. Strengthened natural resources and environmental management contributes to our shared goal of broad-based and resilient growth in the Philippines. Surely with the best minds in the Philippines and in the U.S. working together, many of the country’s development challenges can be addressed,” USAID Mission Director Gloria D. Steele said.  

The exhibit will run inside The Mind Museum for about three months before travelling to various provinces in the Philippines.

Located in Bonifacio Global City, The Mind Museum is a non-stock, non-profit science museum of the Bonifacio Art Foundation. The institution opened in 2012 and won the international TEA award in 2014 for its thematic threads, design and execution.

Visit this page to book your tickets. – Rappler.com

 

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