While Icon of the Seas may have dominated the cruise news cycle over the last week, there's other Royal Caribbean news you should know about!

Given how large a company Royal Caribbean is, there's plenty of moving parts and we wanted to make sure you were up to date with all of this week's remaining Royal Caribbean news.

If you ever have a news tip, feel free to email it to [email protected] for possible inclusion in a future update!

First U.S. cruise ship begins using renewable diesel fuel

Navigator of the Seas is the first major cruise line in the United States to use a renewable diesel fuel.

Not only is Navigator the first ship, but Royal Caribbean Group is now the first major cruise line operator to sail a cruise ship from a U.S. port with this new kind of fuel.

The renewable fuel being used by Navigator of the Seas contains less carbon than traditional marine fuels. While this fuel is produced from renewable raw materials, the production process for this fuel makes it molecularly identical to traditional marine gas oil — creating a "drop in" fuel that can be safely used with the ship's existing engines.

Royal Caribbean will continue using lower carbon fuel to meet part of the Los Angeles-based ship's fuel needs as it evaluates the feasibility for long-term use. The cruise line's goal is to expand its usage to other ships across the fleet. 

For the trial, Royal Caribbean Group has partnered with World Fuel Services to supply the renewable fuel to Navigator of the Seas. The Jankovich Company will deliver the fuel on behalf of World Fuel Services to the ship while at the Port of Los Angeles. Once fueled, Navigator of the Seas will set sail to Mexico.

In addition to testing the use of biofuel aboard Navigator of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Group is set to debut the cruise industry's first hybrid-powered ship in summer 2023, as part of Silversea Cruises newest class of ships, the Nova class.

Royal Caribbean Group is also working to reduce emissions while at port by investing in shore power on its ships and collaborating with key cruise ports for its use.

This is in addition to a previously announced deal to bring shore power to PortMiami and a new zero-energy cruise terminal in the Port of Galveston, Texas.

Royal Caribbean Group schedules third quarter business update

Royal Caribbean Group announced it has scheduled a conference call with investors to discuss its third quarter results and provide a business update.

The call is scheduled for 10am Eastern Time on Thursday, November 3, 2022.

The call will be available on-line at the company's investor relations website, www.rclinvestor.com.

Local artist partners with new Royal Caribbean cruise terminal

When Royal Caribbean's new cruise terminal in Galveston opens next month, you'll see art sourced from local artists.

Royal Caribbean wants to celebrate local art and culture, so they teamed up with Houston-based Piper Faust Public Art to assemble a slate of Texas artists to consider for this unique opportunity. They picked a design concept by the husband-and-wife team of Brad Oldham and Christy Coltrin of Brad Oldham Sculpture.

The Galveston Beach Trio sculpture, which is forged in stainless steel and lost-wax bronze, will welcome guests at the cruise line's new terminal facility.

The larger-than-life sculpture depicts a musical trio inspired by the rich musical heritage of the historic port city. Galveston has been home to musicians like Grammy Award-winning bass-baritone singer and songwriter Barry White, as well as local artists like Joyce Fields, who played piano for nearly 20 years at Sunday brunch at the historic Hotel Galvez, and Joe Pena, the guitarist known as the Granddaddy of Galveston Rock and Roll.

Joshua Carroll, vice president of Destination Development at Royal Caribbean Group, talked about this new deal, "Our passion lies in sharing the world's incredible destinations with our guests, allowing them to experience cultures from around the world, including the places from which their travels begin."

"Showcasing the history and culture of Galveston was our top priority in establishing this art installation in our new terminal, and we're thrilled to partner with Brad Oldham Sculpture to bring this vision to life."

Royal Caribbean's new terminal opens on November 9, 2022.

Royal Caribbean Group released on Friday its sustainability report for the year 2021.

This is the 14th annual sustainability report that Royal Caribbean has released to the public, and it outlines the environmental policies across the company.

This report provides a comprehensive update on Royal Caribbean’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) actions and activities across all of the company’s brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises.

This year for 2021, Royal Caribbean Group reworked their ESG report to even more reflect the company’s efforts towards creating more sustainable cruising within the industry. The report focuses on five areas in which Royal Caribbean Group is working towards sustainability specifically. These five areas include: champion communities and the environment; provide unforgettable cruise experiences; foster human rights and be an employer of choice; advance net zero innovation; and govern responsibly. 

Jason Liberty, the CEO of Royal Caribbean Group said the following, “all of us at Royal Caribbean Group are focused on delivering the best vacations possible and doing so responsibly. This reflects our commitment to continuous innovation and building a sustainable cruise industry while growing our business for good.”

The debut of the 2021 sustainability report comes on the heels of Royal Caribbean Group announcing that they have committed to an additional five-year partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF). 

“Much of what the Royal Caribbean Group has achieved has involved collaborators and partners. One of the most important is World Wildlife Fund. WWF’s counsel on key sustainability matters has added rigor and accountability across many facets of the business, including sustainable tourism, sourcing, and reduction of emissions. The company is currently embarking on a new set of co-developed targets involving reduction of food waste. WWF is knowledgeable in the ecology and environmental characteristics of many of the company’s destinations,” stated Chairman of Safety, Environment, Sustainability and Health Committee for Royal Caribbean Group, William K. Reilly. 

The ESG report for 2021 highlights Royal Caribbean Group’s efforts to become increasingly energy efficient. Some of the ways Royal Caribbean Group details their energy efficiency include: 

• Capturing engine waste heat to heat shower and galley water.
• Co2 and occupancy-based ventilation controls to optimize AC fan energy consumption.
• Advanced Emissions Purification system to treat and clean exhaust gases.
• LED and fluorescent lights to reduce energy use and produce less heat.
• AI-based weather routing to optimize timing, route, speed, and distances traveled.
• Chiller and HVAC upgrades to reduce energy consumption. 
• Shorepower connects to the local electrical grid while docked and completely removes emissions. 
• Galley energy management system, including demand-based ventilation, to benchmark equipment energy usage. 
• Optimized power plant design to better sync with ship’s operational profile. 
• Improved hull with anti-founding paint and redesigned propulsion system. - Air lubrication system to reduce drag and increase fuel efficiency. 

The 2021 ESG report emphasizes Royal Caribbean Group’s efforts to decarbonization, especially through the company’s Destination Net Zero strategy. This strategy aims to identify Science-Based Targets (SBT) and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Strategy’s such as these will help the company identify their goals and achieve their targets in the realm of sustainability. 

Destination Net Zero demonstrated Royal Caribbean Group’s focus on serving as a focal point for change within the industry, with developments that include the following: 

• Introducing a fuel-cell hybrid design that allows for zero emissions in each port the ships dock.
• Future-proofing the company’s ship-building portfolio through fuel flexibility and innovation that ensures that each new ship class that Royal Caribbean debuts is 20% more energy efficient that the previous. 
• Developing waste management technologies that can convert waste to energy. Currently 100% of the Royal Caribbean fleet is equipped to be land-fill free.
• Being prepared, through shore power, to connect to local power grids as soon as it becomes available.

Other areas that Royal Caribbean Group is working towards are: sustainable business development and growth, sustainable tourism, waste management, and continued carbon emissions reduction. 

Some additional statistics released in Royal Caribbean’s report include:

• “We reduced our waste-to-landfill by 87% from 2007 to 2021.”
• “We eliminated single-use plastic condiment packages, cutlery, and shopping bags. We’ve now reduces our single-use plastics by 60% since the beginning of the initiative.”
• “We protect destinations by offering more than 2,000 GSTC-certified sustainable tours around the world.”
• “We granted $21 million in relief funds across 78 countries.”

To read Royal Caribbean Group’s 2021 sustainability report and learn more about the company’s efforts towards sustainable cruising, readers can visit: www.royalcaribbeangroup.com/sustainability 

I don't want you to miss any of the important Royal Caribbean changes from this week, so here's a look at some of the updates from the last couple of days.

With the industry moving closer to full capacity again, lots of changes are happening around Royal Caribbean.

Here's a quick wrap-up of what's new this week in the world of Royal Caribbean cruises.

Royal Caribbean renews partnership with World Wildlife Fund

Royal Caribbean Group has doubled down on its commitment to the environment by renewing its deal with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Royal Caribbean Group announced it has extended its existing partnership with the WWF with a new five year commitment.

The WWF provides Royal Caribbean Group with guidance and counsel in establishing environmental goals and sustainable business practices.

WWF and Royal Caribbean have been partners since 2016 in order to embed sustainability by promoting responsible tourism in priority coastal destinations and help protect the oceans by investing in conservation programs globally. This included establishing 2020 sustainability goals that the company has met or exceeded, with the exception of the sustainable seafood sourcing target, which was impacted by global suspension of service from the pandemic.

This year, WWF and Royal Caribbean Group will work together to establish sustainability goals across three key areas of Ship, Sea and Shore:

• Ship — Continuous improvement of operational sustainability, including emissions, marine mammal protection, seafood sourcing, plastics reduction, and food waste.
• Sea — Investing in ocean health through targeted philanthropy; engaging with a global science-driven agenda and consumer-facing education and fundraising campaigns.
• Shore — Embedding principles of sustainable development in projects and increasing sustainability and certification of tour operators.

Royal Caribbean Group will also continue to provide financial support to WWF's global ocean conservation work through a $5 million philanthropic contribution and collaborate with WWF to build global awareness about ocean conservation issues among Royal Caribbean Group's millions of guests.

Royal Caribbean cancels Alaska train shore excursions

Guests who had a shore excursion booked on the White Pass Railway for an Alaska cruise had their plans cancelled this week.

Royal Caribbean informed guests that the train tour operator was forced to temporarily suspend any train activities into Canadian territory.

The White Pass train tour is a popular excursion in Skagway. 

The good news is the train can still operate, although it must remain within the United States.

Thanks to RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader Steve Cohen for sharing the information.

Canadian Switch Health test kit accepted by Royal Caribbean

Good news for Canadian guests that the Canadian Switch Health test kit is accepted by Royal Caribbean for a pre-cruise test.

RoyalCaribbeanBlog writer Chantal McPhee asked the cruise line's social media team for clarification and it appears the answer is yes.

Similar to the Abbotts proctored tests for Americans, the Switch Health tests are available for at-home testing for Canadians.

Royal Caribbean deepens partnership with Barbados

Royal Caribbean announced a new strategic partnership with the Caribbean island of Barbados.

The agreement was signed in Miami earlier this week. Part of the deal will assist with employment opportunities for Barbadians onboard Royal Caribbean cruise ships.

For the cruise line, Royal Caribbean is looking to deepen the commercial relationships with the country.

Royal Caribbean Group announced on Wednesday a new initiative to make its cruise ships as eco-friendly as possible by reducing net zero emissions by 2050.

"Destination Net Zero" is the name of the new program that the company is calling its collective effort.

There are two primary objectives in its pledge to pursue science-based targets:

• Delivery of a net zero emissions cruise ship
• A path to net zero emissions by 2050

A comprehensive decarbonization strategy is behind how Royal Caribbean Group will get there, and executives feel now is the time to get moving on that goal.

"Decades ago, we set out on a course to advance sustainability; our vision now is to realize carbon-free cruising over the next two decades," said Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain.

"Today we are announcing the most important destination of all in our company's history – Destination Net Zero – an ambitious strategy to cut emissions, protect our oceans, and ensure the viability of the hundreds of destinations that our guests and crew members care deeply about."

How they will get there

Over 18 to 24 months, Royal Caribbean Group will develop goals to be validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

The work will begin following the publication of SBTi's marine transport methodology. Science-based targets show companies how much, and how quickly, they need to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to help limit global warming.

The company will set key milestones to ensure they are making progress, one of which will be the delivery of a net zero cruise ship by 2035.

Thanks to optimized hull design and system upgrades such as AC chillers utilizing 30-40% less energy, Royal Caribbean Group has consistently delivered a new generation of ships 20-25% more efficient than their predecessors. 

To reach their goal of net zero emissions, Royal Caribbean Group will pull a lot of levers, including a few already announced. SilverSea Cruises will launch the first hybrid-powered ship set to debut summer 2023, and a wind farm in Kansas will offset up to 12% of the company's scope 1 and 2 emissions per year.

Destination Net Zero's four-pronged approach includes:

1. Modernization of the cruise company's global brands fleet through the introduction of 13 new energy-efficient and alternatively fueled vessels.
    
2. Continued investment in energy efficiency programs for its fleet, including energy saving technologies, enhanced data systems and digitalization.
    
3. Development of alternative fuel and alternative power solutions.
    
4. Optimized deployment and integration of strategic shore-based supply chains.

Many companies talk about sustainability, but Royal Caribbean Group has done much in the last year to make it happen.

Royal Caribbean Group released its 13th annual sustainability report, which encompass everything the company is doing towards sustainability.

In short, Royal Caribbean Group reports they have met or exceeded nearly all of its 2020 sustainability targets.

The report is organized into four main sections conveying Royal Caribbean Group's strategic approach to sustainability, from emissions reductions to supporting employees and crew in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Here is a look at the highlights from the report:

Emissions reduction

Royal Caribbean Group achieved its carbon reduction target of 35% and has committed to further reduce emissions 25% by 2025.

• Royal Caribbean Group's wind farm project in Kansas, developed in partnership with Southern Power, began operations and generated approximately 242,000 tons of CO2 offsets. It is expected that the wind farm will offset up to 12% of the company's global emissions each year.
• Celebrity Apex joined the fleet with shore power connectivity and with an energy efficiency standard (EEDI) 39% more efficient than the current International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirement.
• Icon-Class cruise ships, expected to launch in 2023, will use cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas and fuel cell technology, which reduces ship emissions.

Sustainable sourcing

The company has a commitment to source 90% of wild-caught seafood and 75% of farmed seafood, served on Royal Caribbean Group ships from certified sustainable sources, a first for the cruise industry. 

• While the global suspension of service delayed this goal, as cruise operations resume, Royal Caribbean Group remains committed to tracing back to its origin the sustainable seafood served across the company's fleet.
• Additionally, the company is constantly working to identify sustainable products, from cage-free eggs to humanely raised pork.

Circular economy

The company is working to achieve zero waste across the Royal Caribbean Group fleet.

• Today, 100% of the company's fleet is equipped to be landfill-free. Only 0.50 pounds of waste are sent to landfill per passenger each day — 80% less than the U.S. average on shore.
• Whenever possible, the waste on Royal Caribbean Group ships is reused, recycled or converted to energy.
• The company has removed 60% of single-use plastics from its supply chain. 

Water and wastewater

Royal Caribbean Group ships work to ensure fresh water on their ships is used sparingly and efficiently.

• 90% of fresh water is produced on board its ships in order to not deplete local resources.
• On average, only 66 gallons of water per person per day are used, compared with the U.S. average of 100 gallons per person.
• Each ship is equipped with a water treatment plant. Advanced wastewater purification systems are designed to be twice as stringent as U.S. federal standards, with a company policy of no untreated waste released into the ocean.

You can view the full report online.

Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain was extremely pleased with the report, " "While I'm proud of the progress we have achieved, the importance of this area has grown exponentially. Consistent with our mantra of continuous improvement, we have significantly expanded our aspirations in this critical area and are setting even more aggressive goals for the coming years."

"We believe that what gets measured gets better. Sustainability is a core area for our business, and this report reflects our successes and challenges over the past year."

Are you an Australian that has tortoiseshell products? You can do your part to save the Hawksbill Turtle by giving them up.

Royal Caribbean Australia is parterning with the WWF and Australian Museum in a new campaign that seeks to save the Hawksbill Turtle by asking Australians to give up their tortoiseshell products so vulnerable populations can be traced through extracted DNA.

The new effort is called "Surrender Your Shell", which hopes to use cutting-edge technology to extract DNA from products to track the illegal trade of tortoiseshell.

Researchers will use this DNA to trace tortoiseshell products back to the turtles’ nesting beach and develop a database or “ShellBank” for the first time in the Asia-Pacific. This information will help identify vulnerable turtle populations, so WWF-Australia can work with local communities, governments and the tourism industry to improve turtle protection.

In order to facilitate this effort, the Australian Government has introduced a six month period of leniancy where Australians can send historically purchased tortoiseshell products to WWF-Australia, along with details of where and when they were purchased, without the risk of facing prosecution.

To participate, Australians just need to track down any tortoiseshell products they’ve collected, or been gifted, over the years.

Real tortoiseshell items are brown, orange, amber and yellow in colour and feature irregular patterns.

If people suspect a product is real, they can take the following steps to support the project:

1. Visit www.wwf.org.au/surrenderyourshell to enter your details, including when and where the item was purchased, to retrieve a unique identification number. 
2. Attach the unique identification number to your tortoiseshell product, package appropriately and either post through the Australia Post eParcel Returns portal or visit a Post Office with your surrendered tortoiseshell and post to WWF-Australia.
3. Ensure you post your item between 1 December 2020 and 1 June 2021.

The first 100 items sent through the Australia Post eParcel Returns portal will be paid for by WWF-Australia.

“We’re proud to support the crusade to save this precious species, and to raise awareness with Australians, and our guests, on the part they can play in bringing these turtles back from the brink,” says Gavin Smith, Royal Caribbean International VP and managing director, AUNZ. “The ocean is our lifeblood and we are committed to preserving it — through our own innovation, our Save the Waves programme, and through important collaborations like “Surrender Your Shell.” 

It is estimated nearly 9 million hawksbill turtles have been traded for their distinctive shells over the past 150 years, bringing the species close to extinction. The Pacific Ocean's population has declined by more than 75% and now just 4,800 breeding female hawksbills are thought to survive.

Royal Caribbean announced a major milestone today in its fight to save the Hawksbill Turtle from extinction.

The cruise line in partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia, announced a new DNA extraction test will offer scientists and conservationists vital information to track – and ultimately help end – the illegal trade of hawksbill turtle products. This is a significant breakthrough led by WWF Australia, Royal Caribbean the NOAA Fisheries’ Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC), in California, USA. 

The innovative project forms part of Royal Caribbean and WWF’s five-year global partnership to support ocean conservation and help ensure the long-term health of the seas. Turtle lovers and holidaymakers are encouraged to support Royal Caribbean and WWF’s efforts and #thinkbeforeyoubuy while traveling overseas.

Hunted for their beautiful shells, the species is now listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with the scientific community estimating as few as 6,700 breeding females remain in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Hawksbill turtles from different regions, or even some countries, are genetically distinct, and their DNA signatures can be used to identify different nesting areas. The new test will allow scientists and marine conservationists to identify which where tortoiseshell products have come from and pinpoint hawksbill turtle populations to allow for targeted conservation efforts.

The next step in the project is to build a more comprehensive genetic database of all hawksbill rookeries across Asia Pacific to help identify what populations there are in different locations to protect those most at risk from poaching. This kind of information is limited or currently unavailable and will provide vital information for wildlife managers and law enforcement to act on.

Learn more about Royal Caribbean’s partnership with WWF and their work to end the illegal turtle trade here.

Ahead of its 2020 goal, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. announced it now offers  1,400 sustainable tours are now available for booking. 

Offered by certified sustainable tour operators, these special tours are available across Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.'s (RCL) family of brands — including Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara — and are available around the world.

Back in 2016, Royal Caribbean set up a goal to match the 2020 World Wildlife Fund (WWF) target to offer guests 1,000 tours provided by operators certified to the UN-created Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) standard. Royal Caribbean believes by reaching this goal one year ahead of schedule, it clearly demonstrates its, "commitment to operate sustainably and provide its guests with responsible options while ashore."

GSTC standards, known as the GSTC Criteria, are organized around four main themes: effective sustainability planning, maximizing social and economic benefits for the local community, enhancing cultural heritage, and reducing negative impacts to the environment.

Our guests are eager to explore and discover new cultures and places, and we want to do our part to ensure those destinations continue to thrive," said Roberta Jacoby, Managing Director, Global Tour Operations, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.  "Achieving this goal was a truly collaborative process with our motivated tour operators and with the dedicated team at Global Sustainable Tourism Council."

Royal Caribbean held a conference call with investors earlier today to go over its 2019 second quarter earnings, which shed light on a few interesting anecdotes.

Perfect Day at CocoCay is attracting new cruisers, not steal from other lines

If there was one theme of the earnings call, it is that Royal Caribbean has hit a grand slam with its private island makeover earlier this year, Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Richard D. Fain, Chairman and CEO, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. said, "To describe Perfect Day as a home run, wouldn't do it justice. It really resets the bar in the short-cruise market."

"But it's important to note that Perfect Day wasn't designed to steal customers from other cruise lines; it was designed to attract customers who otherwise wouldn't be taking a cruise. And it's doing that beautifully."

Perfect Day at CocoCay is bringing in big returns

In addition to being well-received by cruisers and reviewers alike, Perfect Day at CocoCay is also making a giant impact on the cruise line's bottom line.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chief Financial Officer, Jason Liberty, spoke to this point, "What has been particularly impressive over the past few months is the pricing we are receiving for sailings visiting Perfect Day at CocoCay. Pricing on these sailings has been consistently outpacing our lofty expectations. It has been a major contributor to our improved, non-Cuba revenue outlook."

Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley said, "In total in '19 and through into '20, eleven of the Royal Caribbean ships will be going to Perfect Day at CocoCay, so you can imagine the volume that we are taking to Perfect Day has gone up by a factor of about four. And we are already taking a lot of guests to CocoCay before we underwent all of this work and changed the whole experience."

"I think today we've taken maybe 350,000 people to Perfect Day since we opened. It's now rated the number one resort globally for Royal Caribbean, and it's knocking it out of the park in terms of truly delivering a phenomenal day. The guest satisfaction is extremely high."

"The demand we are seeing comes from all segments. It competes very well with Orlando. It's got a truly wonderful day, both in thrill and chill. It is also driving new-to-cruise, because approximately 40% of the short market is new-to-cruise."

Sustainability and accountability is important

Mr. Fain provided an update on the cruise line's sustainability efforts, and how well it is following the plan it laid out earlier.

"As most of you know, in 2016, we launched a partnership with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to take our sustainability efforts to a new level. At Royal Caribbean, we believe that what gets measured, gets better, and we established specific goals in three areas of sustainability. The three areas where we established these quantifiable goals were the areas of carbon footprint, sustainable destinations, sustainable food production."

"Specifically, we undertook a 35% reduction in carbon footprint of our 2005 base, offering one thousand tours certified to the GSTC sustainability standard, and responsibility to responsibly sourcing 90% of wild-caught seafood globally, 75% of farm seafood in North America and Europe. We set a public goal to reach these objectives by the end of 2020."

"I am happy to report that we are on schedule. We achieved our carbon footprint goal earlier this year, and just two weeks ago, we certified our one thousandth sustainable tour operation. We're not there yet on our sustainable food sourcing goal, but we're walking diligently to do so, and hope to reach that target soon."

Cost of Cuba

Earlier this year, the United States government ended the ability of cruise lines to sail to Cuba and the impact of that policy change was quantified during this call.

Mr. Liberty explained, "The abrupt removal of calls to Cuba on June sailings on Majesty of the Seas and Empress of the Seas costs us 30 basis points in year-over-year yields for the quarter. While the Cuba policy change was financially and operationally painful, our underlying business remains very strong, as we both outperformed on onboard revenue and saw further close-in demand for our core products."

If they could go back in time, Royal Caribbean would have done more

One of the analysts on the call asked Royal Caribbean if they had a "do over" during the last recession, would they have held back as much as they did for ship orders.

Mr. Liberty said bluntly, "There's definitely regret that we have in terms of our pull-back on our growth. We would all be talking about higher earnings numbers today, better return profile today if we hadn't slowed down our growth, or our investment efforts in expanding our global footprint, investing in different projects that would have put us in an even stronger position than we are in today."

With the support of Royal Caribbean, WWF-Australia will step up efforts to help combat the illegal trade of hawksbill turtles in Asia-Pacific - the number one threat to the critically endangered turtle.

For the first time in the region, WWF-Australia will work with partners to test ground-breaking technology to extract DNA from tortoiseshell products, such as earrings, bracelets and other trinkets. The collaboration will develop a DNA database to help identify hawksbill populations most at risk from the illegal tortoiseshell trade by tracing hawksbills products from their point-of-sale to where they were poached.

“Despite international trade being banned over twenty years ago, poaching and the sale of hawksbill products still takes place in our region. It is unclear where poaching is most prevalent, but with the help of the turtle DNA test and database we’ll be able to map poaching hotspots and work with local governments in the Asia-Pacific region to combat these illegal activities,” said Christine Hof, Marine Species Project Manager, WWF-Australia.

Hawksbill turtles are one of the most beautiful and important species in the ocean, playing a vital role in maintaining the health of our oceans; from promoting coral growth through their appetite for algae, to supporting vital feeding grounds for reef communities.  However, over the last 100 years the hawksbill population has declined by more than 75% and it’s estimated there are only 4,800 breeding females remaining in the Pacific Ocean.

The hawksbill faces a unique threat as it is the only sea turtle species that is hunted for its shell, commonly known as “tortoiseshell”, which is made into souvenirs frequently sold to travelers while on holidays overseas. 

“Hunted and traded for their shell, Hawksbill turtles are critically endangered. Ending this trade will take a coordinated effort. We are extremely passionate about this partnership with WWF-Australia, and need to act now to ensure these prehistoric sea creatures have a future,” said Susan Bonner, VP and Managing Director, Royal Caribbean Australia & NZ.

The partnership will also increase awareness of the issue amongst those travelling throughout Asia-Pacific. RCL and WWF-Australia intend to educate millions of supporters and travellers about this illegal trade by providing them with the information they need to identify illegal tortoiseshell products and avoid buying them, with the launch of an extensive consumer campaign.

A hawksbill turtle adoption programme will be available to all Australians in 2019. Adoption of a hawksbill turtle via Royal Caribbean will support WWF-Australia’s essential conservation work – protecting the habitat, preserving their food sources and ensuring the safety of threatened species locally and globally.

RCL has a long history of innovation, and is committed to protecting the communities and environments in which it operates. From wastewater and waste management, to energy efficiency and sourcing practices, RCL is dedicated to continually improving operations, to minimise its’ environmental footprint and increase support for conservation.

“We have a responsibility to the guests who sail with us, the people who work for us, and the communities we visit, but most importantly we have a responsibility to the magnificent oceans, which are at the very essence of our business,” said Bonner.

In 2016, RCL and WWF embarked on a five-year global journey to help ensure the long-term health of the world’s oceans. The RCL and WWF-Australia local partnership to protect the hawksbill turtle will run in the Asia-Pacific region for the next three years.

For more information visit www.royalcaribbean.com.au/wwf.