April 2026 Edition
A monthly round-up of news and trends important to the AltaSea community.
AltaSea Community Spotlight
Los Angeles Harbor College, in partnership with the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office, AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles, and a consortium of 14 colleges, announced the next wave of Blue Economy workforce development through the 3rd Annual Blue Economy & Climate Action Pathways (BECAP) Summit — a landmark collaboration shaping the workforce ecosystems of tomorrow.
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AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles, the world’s leading tech hub for the blue economy, today announced the appointment of businessman and philanthropist Jon Sutton Day to its Board of Trustees, effective March 31.
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Sperra today announced the successful deployment of its first full-scale 3D concrete printed gravity anchor in EDP’s floating solar laboratory at the Alto Rabagão pumped hydropower reservoir in Portugal.
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Michael Arens thinks we ought to know what kind of trash is causing pollution. His company, Clean Earth Rovers, collects hundreds of pounds of trash at the Port of Los Angeles to be sorted, counted and documented. Since the beginning of January, it has removed around 1 ton from the Port of Los Angeles – around 200 to 400 pounds a day. Arens has seen everything including potato chip bags, plastic water and soap bottles, and lip balm tubes.
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Today, Arc announced it has closed a $50 million Series C round led by Eclipse, a16z, Menlo Ventures, Lowercarbon, Necessary Ventures, and Offline Ventures. The funding accelerates production of Arc’s electric powertrains for tugboats, ferries, and defense vessels — the commercial backbone of the marine industry.
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Summer 2026 applications are now OPEN
Our paid internship program will place our interns and fellows with one of our various partners. The work and research these organizations do is integral to our mission to advance the blue economy.
Applications close on May 1st, 2026
Come see where innovation meets reality!
A field trip to AltaSea isn’t just a day by the ocean — it’s a chance for students to see the
future of sustainability in action and imagine their own place in it.
Become a member today!
AltaSea remains committed to supporting science-based solutions to climate change—solutions that both protect the oceans and benefit local communities. But we can’t do it without your support. Please make a tax-deductible donation and join UrgentSEA, our new membership campaign, today.
Welcome New Members!
Robin A. | Diane B. | Natasha B. | Margarita C. | Ann L. | Cheo L. | Matt L. | Larry L. | Hayden S. | Alice T. | Stephen W.
RSVP today!
Join us on Saturday April 18 for another AltaSea open house. This time featuring Megan Cook, Director of Outreach and Media at Ocean Exploration Trust.
Following the keynote, students and attendees are invited to participate in Career Day. Meet with our on-site partners, learn about a variety of professions, and explore potential career pathways.
We will close the event with a special Intern Recognition Ceremony honoring our fall and summer interns.
April 14, 2026
12:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Step into the future of ocean conservation at The Blue Forum, an event bridging marine science, innovation, and climate action.
This gathering, hosted during LA Climate Week 2026 and organized by the FACC California Sustainability Committee, in partnership with AltaSea and Braid Theory, unites international and intergenerational entrepreneurs boasting over 50 years of combined experience in ocean exploration.
Further Reading
Marine Science
Some climate scientists are calling attention to yet another alarming recent climate trend: Earth’s declining reflectivity and what it may mean for feedback effects on future warming.
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Marine Science
Chile has granted full protection to 360,000km² of ocean around the Juan Fernández and Nazca-Desventuradas marine parks, creating one of the world’s largest fully protected marine areas and surpassing 50% ocean protection.
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Sustainable and Innovative Business
India’s first open-sea fish farming project in the Andaman Sea signals a strategic shift toward science-based offshore aquaculture to sustainably harness its vast marine resources and strengthen the blue economy.
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Sustainable and Innovative Business
According to the Guidelines for Sustainable Aquaculture (GSA), social responsibility is “the duty to support economic, environmental, cultural and social development to improve the quality of life of people, communities and society.”
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Education
California’s ocean and coastline are in trouble. Oil drilling, overfishing, and insufficient protections place the health of this critical marine environment at risk through wetland destruction, deaths of marine animals, destruction of our ecosystems, and weakens our fight against climate change.