THE WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT

PROGRESS AT THE SANCTUARY SITE: COMPLETION OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES; BAY PEN DESIGN; FIRST NATIONS ENGAGEMENT. STUDIES ON LAND, SEABED AND WATER: WE COMPLETED THREE YEARS OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES ON LAND, WATER, AND THE SUBMERGED SOIL AT THE SANCTUARY SITE. THESE STUDIES ARE REQUIRED TO COMMENCE CONSTRUCTION AT THE SITE, OF BOTH THE LAND-BASED FACILITIES AND OF THE BAY PEN AND PERIMETER NET. THEY ARE ALSO ESSENTIAL TO CONFIRM THAT THE SITE WILL PROVIDE A SAFE AND HEALTHY HABITAT FOR ITS FUTURE WHALE RESIDENTS. WE CONTRACTED AN INDUSTRY LEADER IN THE DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE OF HDPE FLOATING STRUCTURES AND NETTING SOLUTIONS TO BEGIN DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF THE LARGE BAY PEN. THE BAY PEN IS A KEY ELEMENT IN OUR ACCELERATED PLAN DESIGNED TO WELCOME WHALES PRIOR TO THE COMPLETION OF THE FULL SANCTUARY. FIRST NATIONS CONSULTATION & RELATIONS: THE SANCTUARY IS LOCATED IN THE ANCESTRAL AND UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE MI'KMAQ PEOPLE AND WE CONTINUED OUR PART IN THE NATION-TO-NATION CONSULTATION BETWEEN THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT AND TRIBAL GOVERNMENT. FORMAL GOVERNMENT-TO-GOVERNMENT CONSULTATION ABOUT THE SANCTUARY PROJECT WAS INITIATED BY THE NOVA SCOTIA GOVERNMENT AT THE END OF 2021, AND WE GREATLY APPRECIATED THE COOPERATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT OF MI'KMAQ ELDERS AND AUTHORITIES THROUGHOUT 2022 & 2023 AS THEY CONTINUE CONSULTATIONS. FOLLOWING FIRST NATION CONSULTATION REVIEW OF OUR SITE ASSESSMENT WORK AND THE REQUIRED ARCHEOLOGICAL RESOURCE IMPACTS ASSESSMENT, THE NOVA SCOTIA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND RENEWABLES ISSUED THE LETTER OF AUTHORITY. THE MI'KMAQ ENVIRONMENTAL KNOWLEDGE STUDY CONDUCTED BY THE INDEPENDENT MI'KMAQ APPROVED TRIBAL CONSULTANT HAS BEEN COMPLETED AND SUBMITTED TO TRIBAL LEADERSHIP. ADDITIONALLY, WE BEGAN COORDINATING OBTAINING A FORMAL LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM MI'KMAQ TRIBAL LEADERS, ADDRESSED TO THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT AND TO BE DELIVERED IN 2024. ACCELERATED PLANNING FOR URGENT WHALES: TO MEET THE URGENT NEED OF TWO CAPTIVE ORCAS HELD AT A FRENCH MARINE PARK, WE DEVELOPED AN ACCELERATED PLAN DESIGNED TO MAKE THE SITE READY TO RECEIVE WHALES BEFORE FULL CONSTRUCTION OF LAND-SIDE FACILITIES AND THE SITE'S PERIMETER NET HAVE BEEN COMPLETED. THE BAY PEN WILL ALWAYS BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE SANCTUARY, SERVING AS AN INITIAL SPACE FOR OTHER NEW ARRIVALS, WHERE THEY CAN BECOME ACCUSTOMED TO THE TIDES AND FLOWS OF THE OCEAN AND WHERE WE CAN HAVE THEM UNDER CLOSE OBSERVATION BEFORE RELEASING THEM INTO THE FULL AREA OF THE SANCTUARY. DIPLOMACY: IN TANDEM WITH A FRENCH NGO, WE WORKED EXTENSIVELY TO PRESENT THE SANCTUARY WE ARE ESTABLISHING IN NOVA SCOTIA AS A SOLUTION FOR THE TWO SURVIVING ORCAS WHO ARE BEING HELD IN CAPTIVITY AT A FRENCH MARINE PARK. A NEW FRENCH LAW DICTATES THAT CETACEANS CAN NO LONGER BE HELD IN CAPTIVITY FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES AND THE MARINE PARK MUST RELOCATE THE WHALES BY 2026. THE WHALES HAVE BEEN SLATED TO BE SENT TO A JAPANESE AQUARIUM, WHICH CAUSED A PUBLIC OUTCRY IN FRANCE BECAUSE SUCH A MOVE IS NOT IN KEEPING WITH THE SPIRIT OF THE RECENT FRENCH LAW. THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT IS CONSIDERING ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR THE WHALES AND WE INITIATED CONVERSATIONS TO PRESENT OUR SANCTUARY AS A POTENTIAL HOME FOR THE WHALES. CAPACITY BUILDING: TO BUILD OUR TEAM'S CAPACITY DURING THIS CRITICAL JUNCTURE, WE HIRED A FULL-TIME, USA-BASED DEPUTY DIRECTOR AND A FULL-TIME NOVA SCOTIA-BASED PROJECT MANAGER. THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOCUSES PRIMARILY ON FUNDRAISING, OPERATIONS, STRATEGY AND COMMUNICATIONS. THE PROJECT MANAGER HELPS OVERSEE ALL WORK DONE AT THE SITE, MANAGES RELATIONS WITH THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT, AND ASSISTS WITH LOCAL COMMUNITY RELATIONS. WHALE AID TOKITAE, OUR 2023 WHALE AID PROGRAM: IN 2023, WE CONTINUED OUR WORK IN SUPPORT OF THE NEW NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION FRIENDS OF TOKI IN ITS EFFORT TO IMPROVE THE WELFARE OF THE ORCA TOKITAE (BETTER KNOWN BY HER "STAGE" NAME LOLITA) AND RELOCATE HER TO HER NATAL WATERS IN WASHINGTON STATE. IN MAY 2022 (AS REPORTED IN OUR FORM 990 FOR 2022) THE MAYOR OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, THE NEW OWNERS OF THE MIAMI SEAQUARIUM, AND THE NEW NON-PROFIT "FRIENDS OF TOKI" HAD ANNOUNCED AN AGREEMENT BY WHICH A TEAM OF INDEPENDENT VETERINARIANS WOULD CONDUCT COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATIONS OF THE ORCA TOKITAE AND PUBLICLY REPORT ON HER PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. HER HEALTH PERMITTING, TOKI MIGHT THEN BE RELOCATED TO AN OCEAN HABITAT IN THE SALISH SEA, FROM WHICH SHE HAD BEEN CAPTURED IN 1970. IN 2023, MEMBERS OF THE WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT TEAM, INCLUDING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CHARLES VINICK, BUILT UPON OUR EARLIER WORK WITH SACRED LANDS CONSERVANCY, AN INDIGENOUS-LED NON-PROFIT IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST, TO DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE OPERATIONAL PLAN FOR THE SAFE AND RESPONSIBLE POSSIBLE RELOCATION OF TOKITAE. MEMBERS OF THE WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT TEAM PROVIDED ADVICE AND EXPERTISE TO FRIENDS OF TOKI AND TO STAFF AT THE MIAMI SEAQUARIUM AS THEY PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS PLAN. CHARLES VINICK ALSO SERVED AS A VOLUNTEER BOARD MEMBER OF FRIENDS OF TOKI AND LATER AS ITS DIRECTOR. FUNDING FOR THIS WORK, INCLUDING STAFF TIME FOR MEMBERS OF THE WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT, WAS INITIATED BY DONATIONS TO WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT BY FRIENDS OF TOKI'S CO-FOUNDER, ENVIRONMENTALIST PRITAM SINGH. PRIOR TO FRIENDS OF TOKI'S ESTABLISHMENT AS A 501(C)(3) CHARITY, THE WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT SERVED AS A FISCAL SPONSOR FOR FRIENDS OF TOKI, RECEIVING A 1,000,000 DONATION FROM AN ANGEL DONOR ON BEHALF OF FRIENDS OF TOKI. INITIAL EXPENSES FOR TOKI WERE COVERED UNDER OUR WHALE AID PROGRAM AND THE REMAINING FUNDS OF 850,000 WERE DISTRIBUTED TO FRIENDS OF TOKI UPON THE ORGANIZATION'S LEGAL ESTABLISHMENT. IN ADDITION TO THE EXPENSES ABOVE THERE WERE DONATED SERVICES OF 19,881.