One of today's to-dos includes working on some concept drawings and mockups... I'm having fun trying to illustrate a flyer for a local film screening of Kaiya Yonamine's powerful documentary - “Our Island’s Treasure” (私達の島の宝) - about Henoko back in our beloved ancestral homeland of Okinawa / Ryukyu.
So, that’s why I decided to “make” some new friends. Please say hello and let me know what you think. Have you ever met a dugong before?
I hope, I get to see one of these precious creatures in real life some day! In Okinawan/Ryukyuan culture, the dugong was considered the "messenger of peace."
Below are some additional facts about the dugong and Okinawan's efforts to Protect Our Oceans:
• You might not have met a dugong before because they are actually an endangered species! • The governments of Japan and the United States are plowing ahead with construction of a new air base in Okinawa's Oura Bay, off the coast of Henoko, threatening to destroy the last refuge of the critically endangered Okinawa dugong.
• It's not just dugongs that are in harm's way: Okinawa's coral reefs support an entire world of rare, fascinating and little-known creatures — and tragically more than half of these reefs have already disappeared due to global warming and pollution.
• 80% of the Okinawan people, including their governor, oppose the base.
• Both the U.S. Marine Mammals Commission and the World Conservation Union have confirmed that the building of the base in Henoko is a serious threat to dugongs, which are entitled to protections under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
Resources:
⇒ more info:
https://uchinanchu.com/
⇒ one way to take action:
http://bit.ly/USHASCpetition
⇒ Can't wait to watch? Here's the doc:
https://vimeo.com/340517922
