Eco-Awareness
Our living planet
CREATING
LEARNING EXPERIENCES
Few activities are more fun, rewarding or moving than watching the whales and dolphins rise from the ocean, communicating with us.
Wouldn’t it be great to have more understanding of the behaviors and nature of these beautiful sea creatures?
At Futurismo we believe in the joy and discovery of whale watching, but we also hope to share with you some of the fun facts we have learned about these playful cetaceans. In that way, your enjoyment of this experience will only be enhanced.
OUR MARINE BIOLOGIST WILL SHARE WITH YOU
The heart of our learning process begins with a Futurismo marine biologist. Before every sea tour, one of our biologists gives a briefing to our guests that is part history, part science, and part appreciation of our beloved dolphins.
You’ll learn about the Azores’ history of whaling and how in time we evolved from hunting whales to watching and enjoying them. You’ll also learn about the different species which may be sighted on your tour. Finally, you’ll be briefed on the rules of observation, how we show respect for the animals as well as some onboard safety procedures.
During your tour, our biologists and guides will share more information about the species we spot, along with other marine life and points of interest along the island.
When your trip is finished, there will be a tour recap, reviewing the species we spotted. As a bonus, the biologist can sometimes identify the actual whales sighted on your trip and share their sighting history.
OUR GOAL
SHARING ECO-AWARENESS WITH THE NEW GENERATION
At Futurismo we can’t imagine anything more important than passing on to the next generation our passion for protecting the environment. Throughout the year we invite school children to join us as we share our values of conservation and eco-awareness.
The kids have fun participating in after-school activities that teach them about their environment and the oceans which sustain our planet. We share with them concepts like how to protect our whales and dolphins.
For young children, it’s never too early to give them tips on how they can bring “green” ideas to help the environment in their everyday life.
Special Eco-Events
We love special days like World Ocean Day, World Whale Day and Christmas when the children can enjoy even more unique interactive activities. For instance, we already created eco-Christmas trees from fallen branches (no tree is cut down for our party). Then the kids use collected plastic to decorate their tree in an imaginative new way to recycle!
Through this and many other activities like helping to clean trails and beaches, they learn the importance of protecting our planet.
OUR COMMITMENT
PROMOTE RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
We believe in a “green” future for our blue seas. That means at Futurismo we try to make all our activities sustainable – to protect our Azorean waters for others to enjoy in the years to come. We strive to minimise our impact on the environment and our treasured whales and dolphins. Thus, we always respect the rules of observation, creating a safe space around them.
At Sea: On our tours, when possible, we remove litter spotted on the ocean’s surface. We also conserve our fuel by utilizing onshore lookouts to help locate the animals, lessening our search and travel time.
On Land: Just like our sea tours, when we spot litter on our trails, we always try to remove it – we like to leave the countryside cleaner. Even in our office, we reduce our paper use through limited printing, and recycle whatever we can.
Our commitment to a cleaner, more sustainable future touches every part of our lives.
Futurismo is proud partner with the project Life Priolo, which supports and promotes the conservation of the Priolo bird (Pyrrhula murina).
Sometimes we forget how fragile and precious our ecosystem can be. Imagine that in all the world there is a species of bird that lives only on the island of São Miguel. Even more specifically, that particular bird lives only in a small part of the island – the mountain complex of Serra de Tronqueira.
Its name is the Priolo or Azorean Bullfinch.
It was nearing extinction when the Life Priolo Project was conceived in São Miguel to help restore the native plants on which the Priolo feeds.
Though still critically endangered as the most threatened of all songbirds in Europe, the Priolo’s population has grown to about 1,000.
Futurismo supports these efforts for sustainability. On some of our tours in this region, we visit the Priolo Project’s interpretation centre where our guests can view interactive displays about the Priolo’s plight, and the actions taken to remedy its survival.
LEARN MOREUseful
Resources
SCIENCE & RESEARCH
SCIENCE & RESEARCH
During all whale & dolphin watching tours our staff collect sightings, information and other scientific data for our research program.
RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
We are committed to responsible practices, and strongly adhere to multiple codes of conduct for Responsible Whale Watching.
WCA PARTNER
WCA PARTNER
Futurismo is proud to be a Partner of the World Cetacean Alliance: the world’s largest partnership working to protect cetaceans.
