Update from Renee, Team 7:

The students created the paintings at the Venice Boy's and Girl's Club; They are hanging up there as a tribute to our ocean themed program. In December, we took the elementary students to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. In the new year, we are planning to paint a mural on the building too!

Update from Marie, Team 7:

Below is further information regarding protection of right whales. My colleague provided me with this. It seems so complicated to change commercial shipping lanes...

Excerpts from the Maritime Executive article:

A decision to shift busy shipping lanes off the coast of Massachusetts for the purpose of protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whales is being described by scientists as the right thing to do. The move, if approved, could eliminate up to 80% of whale strikes off the coast of New England. The International Maritime Organization (IMO), a London-based arm of the UN, is expected to approve the change in traffic patterns this week. Back in Massachusetts, some shipping experts and mariners are calling the move ill-advised and say that they were not consulted or given adequate time to voice their opposition to the move....

...The proposed, first ever shift of a shipping lane in US waters for the purpose of protecting an endangered species will probably save the lives of many whales. It is not the first time this has been done and the IMO issued a similar edict a few years back in the Canadian Bay of Fundy. The proposed move in Massachusetts waters, however, has far-reaching political, commercial and marine safety implications.