Enter the Celebrate #vanaqua60 photo contest by uploading your favourite Aquarium photos
On June 15, 1956, the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre opened its doors to the community. The local aquarium was an immediate success, welcoming 10,000 visitors in its first weekend alone. The admission price that day? Twenty-five cents.
This June, Vancouver Aquarium will celebrate six decades of ocean conservation, vital research, curriculum-based education and public engagement, and share stories of the myriad milestones along the way. They’ve kicked it off with the Celebrate #vanaqua60 photo contest, inviting visitors from the last 60 years to share their photos online for a chance to win a one-year membership to the Aquarium.
The sculpture “Killer Whale, Chief of the Undersea World”, by Haida artist Bill Reid, has been on the Aquarium plaza since 1984
More than 44 million people have visited the Aquarium since its opening day, and countless photos have been taken. To enter the contest, users can upload a photo via Instagram or Twitter and hashtag #vanaqua60, or submit directly on their site. All of the photos will be featured in an online gallery on their Facebook page and any submitted before June 1 may be considered to be part of onsite signs as well.
Mark your calendar for the weekend June 18-19, when the Aquarium will host a celebration to remember for the next 60 years. Vancouverites are encouraged to join the festivities to recognize how their local marine science centre has grown into a national conservation organization, making a real difference to protecting our world’s oceans. Experience the Aquarium’s rich history through special family programs and onsite displays and stop by the Aquarium’s beautiful patio at the Waterfall Café — open to all Stanley Park visitors — for a special Ocean Wise salmon BBQ.
Waterfall Café at the Vancouver Aquarium
The milestones over the last 60 years are plenty and their impacts long-lasting. In 1960, Vancouver Aquarium established Canada’s only Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. About 100 marine mammals are rescued, rehabilitated and released each year. The reach of the Aquarium’s conservation efforts spans from coast to coast. In 1994, a handful of Vancouver Aquarium employees started the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. What began as a small group of people actively keeping garbage out of Stanley Park’s local waters has grown into the largest conservation-based cleanup program in the nation with more than 59,000 Canadians participating annually. The national Ocean Wise sustainable seafood program now has more than 650 partners since launching in 2005 and is making ocean-friendly seafood top-of-mind for leading chefs, markets and suppliers who now offer more sustainable options to eco-conscious consumers.
Students and visitors are engaged in hands-on learning, a tradition which continues at the Aquarium today
One thing that hasn’t changed is the Aquarium’s mission to conserve aquatic life through display and interpretation, education, research and direct action. Sixty years of ocean conservation is worth celebrating, so join the Aquarium online or onsite as they commemorate this significant anniversary and look ahead to 60 more.
