The Pristine Seas team has traveled to a dozen of the most untouched parts of the ocean, studying marine life and producing films that share our discoveries with the world. Along the way, the leaders of five of these sites have gone on to declare large no-take marine protected areas that ensure these places will retain their historic character and diversity and serve as safe havens where marine life of all kinds can be free from human interference and exploitation.

For our latest expedition, we’re in the Seychelles, an archipelago just north of Madagascar, where a new debt-swap deal has given the government an opportunity to protect their unique marine assets and possibly create the Indian Ocean’s second largest marine reserve.

Left: Huge coral like this on the seafloor is a good sign for healthy waters all around.

Read All Paul’s Posts From the Seychelles 2015 Expedition