Environment Society Of Oman Rounds Off A Successful Year For Environmental Conservation

Building on its 17-year precedence, the Environment Society of Oman (ESO) is starting off the year by highlighting its efforts to protect Oman’s natural heritage and influence environmentally sustainable behavior in 2021 and setting out its agenda for 2022. Despite reduced staff, resources and funding, ESO, the Sultanate’s only non-profit organization focusing on environmental conservation, carried out a number of educational programmes, awareness campaigns and conservation projects in 2021 thanks to the steadfast and generous help of its members, sponsors and supporters. ESO is welcoming in the New Year with a renewed commitment to conserve and protect one of Oman’s greatest assets: its incredible natural heritage and is inviting you to join them.

With raising environmental awareness at the core of its activities, ESO led 14 community awareness events throughout 2021 and worked with 31 schools from different regions in Oman to promote environmental literacy among students in its Namat competition, previously known as the Green School Competition. The non-profit organization also delivered a series of summer workshops to ensure that children understand the interconnectedness of the environment, economy, and society at an early age and provide them with the skills and knowledge to make responsible decisions for a sustainable future. 

Building on its ongoing programs, ESO launched an anti-lighting pollution initiative to preserve the sea turtle population on Masirah Island and help local coastal communities switch to low glare lighting, one of the main threats to nesting and hatching turtles. Running since 2008, the team continued their Whale and Dolphin conservation program with a series of surveys aiming to quantify the body condition, scarring, and skin lesions of Arabian Sea Humpback whales. The data collected will be used as a baseline to monitor the health and status of these endangered mammals. Moreover, the team visited 89 sites across seven governates and spent over 1000 hours, throughout the year, conducting surveys on endangered vultures while also raising awareness on the importance of their conservation. Through this initiative, ESO observed and identified a total of 16 Lappet-faced vultures and 3 Egyptian vultures and their eggs.

“Among our achievements in 2021 we are proud to have launched the Marine Mammal Atlas of Oman, the culmination of 20 years of scientific research, that serves as an important reference for studies on environmental diversity, while also raising awareness on the cause,” said HH Sayyida Tania Al Said, ESO President. “Pandemic or no pandemic, environmental conservation doesn’t stop. In order to continue advancing towards our goals to protect the nation’s natural resources, we are counting on the steadfast support of the community, and the efforts of our team, to help us in preserving Oman’s unique environment,” she added. 

ESO wrapped up 2021 with 206 individual members, 32 corporate members, as well as 4 hotels and 3 tour operators in its donation program. To help it continue its vital work, it is calling on the public’s continued support. Those who want to join the cause can view membership fees and benefits, the donation process, or ways of supporting, at www.eso.org.om, or by following ESO on social media.