Bright Ideas in Travel 2024

"In March 2023, Six Senses Laamu opened its Sea Hub of Environmental Learning in Laamu—SHELL, for short. It’s the home base for the resort’s Maldives Underwater Initiative (MUI), which carries out marine research in Laamu Atoll and beyond in partnership with the Manta Trust, the Blue Marine Foundation, and the Olive Ridley Project. One of MUI’s major projects is the conservation of the archipelago’s seagrass meadows, which are crucial to the sea turtle diet and a nursery habitat for many species—not to mention a natural carbon sink—but are often removed, especially at international resorts, for aesthetic reasons. MUI has so far helped protect around 230 acres of seagrass, bringing at least 37 resorts around the islands on board through its awareness campaign. MUI also participates in coral monitoring, population studies of turtles and manta rays, education programs at the resort, and more."