Turtle symposium to be held in Goa

India would play host for the first time to an international turtle conference. The 30th annual turtle symposium – “The World of Turtles” is coming to Goa in 2010 and it is for the first time that the symposium is coming to the South Asian region. The conference would be held from April 27-29.

This event is being jointly hosted and organized by sea turtle conservation groups and research organizations as well as institutions that work on marine environment issues across India and South Asia. Based on previous annual symposia of the ISTS, the organisors are expecting up to 700 participants, from as many as 50 countries across the world. The ISTS annual symposium is truly unique, drawing an enormous number and diversity of people interested in these intriguing animals and their habitats.

"Sea turtles inhabit the land and the sea. They connect the shallow nearshore waters to the open sea, cold temperate to warm tropical waters. They migrate across ocean basins. And through several thousands of years, they have connected us ecologically and culturally to the sea. The thirtieth annual symposium on sea turtle biology and conservation will seek to explore these connections and focus on the world they live in. The world of coral reefs, seagrass meadows, open seas and sandy beaches. The world of people, living and working on the coast or at sea; of fishing cultures and livelihoods. All connected by sea turtles and by us," the organizers said.