Oceans Initiative
Oceans Initiative is a Seattle-based nonprofit founded in 2010 by marine conservation scientists Dr. Erin Ashe and Dr. Rob Williams. It conducts field research and produces open-access tools, including the Animal Counting Toolkit, to assess marine mammal populations and inform conservation policy for governments and practitioners globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersSeattle, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Oceans Initiative does
Oceans Initiative is a Seattle-based nonprofit marine conservation science organization founded in 2010 by marine conservation scientists Dr. Erin Ashe (Executive Director) and Dr. Rob Williams (Chief Scientist). The organization conducts use-inspired conservation science focused on whales, dolphins, and ocean ecosystems, combining field research methods (photo-identification, acoustic monitoring with hydrophones, theodolite tracking) with statistical modeling and ecological analysis to assess marine mammal populations and human impacts. Its core outputs include the Animal Counting Toolkit — an open-access methodology co-developed with IUCN, NOAA, University of St Andrews, and CyberTracker for low-cost small-boat marine mammal surveys — long-term population studies such as the Pacific white-sided dolphin photo-identification program, an acoustic monitoring program using 12+ autonomous hydrophones, and educational outreach via the Virtual Marine Biology Camp.
The organization serves government agencies and regulators (NOAA Fisheries, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Puget Sound Partnership, Port of Vancouver), conservation NGOs and academic researchers globally, and individual supporters. It earns revenue through donations, foundation and government grants (notably from Pew Charitable Trusts and Puget Sound Partnership), and symbolic adoption programs (Adopt a Dolphin). It does not sell commercial products; the Animal Counting Toolkit is provided free as open-access resources. Operational footprint is grounded in the Pacific Northwest (Seattle headquarters and Vancouver registered charity address), with active research spanning Indonesia, Australia, Hawaii, Japan, Scotland, the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, and Colombia.
The team consists of approximately 8–10 core staff plus seasonal field workers, interns, and academic collaborators, supported by partnerships with universities including University of Washington, Cornell, University of St Andrews, Curtin University, and University of Hawaii. The organization publishes peer-reviewed findings in journals including Science, Marine Pollution Bulletin, and Frontiers in Marine Science, and engages regulators directly to translate science into policy on issues including vessel noise mitigation, fisheries bycatch limits, and population recovery targets for endangered species such as the Southern Resident killer whale.
Oceans Initiative firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Oceans Initiative
- Legal name
- Oceans Initiative
- Website
- https://oceansinitiative.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Oceans Initiative is a Seattle-based nonprofit founded in 2010 by marine conservation scientists Dr. Erin Ashe and Dr. Rob Williams. It conducts field research and produces open-access tools, including the Animal Counting Toolkit, to assess marine mammal populations and inform conservation policy for governments and practitioners globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Oceans Initiative industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Marine Conservation Research
- NAICS
- Administration of Conservation Programs (92412), Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (924)
- SIC
- Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Marine & Freshwater Conservation (BPAGAGAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Aquatic Ecology & Fisheries Assessments (EUAHAHAB), Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management (BPADALAI)
Keywords
Where Oceans Initiative is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Seattle
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Oceans Initiative business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Donations and charitable contributions: Individual donors contribute to support the nonprofit's conservation mission. The organization accepts donations through its website for both US and Canadian supporters.
- Foundation and government grants: Funded by foundations such as Pew Charitable Trusts and government agencies like Puget Sound Partnership for specific research projects.
- Adopt a Dolphin program: Virtual adoption program allowing supporters to symbolically adopt a dolphin, with proceeds supporting conservation work.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Oceans Initiative product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Oceans Initiative conducts use-inspired conservation science to identify marine species most in need of protection and reduce human impacts on marine ecosystems. They develop open-access tools like the Animal Counting Toolkit for low-cost marine mammal population assessments and conduct long-term research on ocean noise, sustainable fisheries, and climate resilience. Their work combines field research methods (photo-identification, acoustic monitoring, theodolite tracking) with statistical modeling to inform conservation policy.
Product overview
Oceans Initiative is a Seattle-based nonprofit marine conservation science organization offering a portfolio of open-access research methodologies and educational resources. The core product is the Animal Counting Toolkit, a low-cost, open-access system for small-boat surveys to estimate marine mammal abundance, which includes instructional videos, downloadable materials (protractor templates, checklists), and software recommendations (CyberTracker, Distance, QGIS). Supporting their research programs are long-term population studies including a Pacific white-sided dolphin photo-identification study spanning over 25 years, and acoustic monitoring using hydrophone networks and the Acoustic Prospecting Toolkit. The organization also provides educational programming through Virtual Marine Biology Camp. These offerings work together to provide conservation practitioners with practical tools for marine wildlife population assessment.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Animal Counting Toolkit: A low-cost system for rapidly assessing populations of marine mammals, developed in partnership with IUCN and NOAA, providing open-access tools for small-boat surveys.
Products and services
- Animal Counting Toolkit An open-access, low-cost system for rapidly assessing populations of marine mammals through small-boat surveys using distance sampling methods. Includes practical guides, templates, software configurations, and CyberTracker data collection tools, and is intended for conservation practitioners and researchers globally.
- Pacific White-Sided Dolphin Photo-Identification Study Long-term non-invasive population assessment of Pacific white-sided dolphins using dorsal fin photography and photo-ID analysis methods since 2007, now spanning over 25 years of combined data with Alexandra Morton's historical records. Builds a photographic catalogue used to estimate abundance and study life history of the population.
- Acoustic Monitoring and Hydrophone Network Underwater ocean noise measurement using bottom-mounted hydrophones, community science handheld recording systems (Acoustic Prospecting Toolkit), and AMAR (Autonomous Multichannel Acoustic Recorder) equipment for monitoring acoustic habitat quality in whale and dolphin habitats.
- Virtual Marine Biology Camp Free virtual educational programming including marine biology videos, interviews with scientists, coloring pages, and online classes for children and families, with sessions led by scientists, artists, and guest speakers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Endangered whales losing up to 97% of communication opportunities due to human noise in some areas
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Oceans Initiative
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Oceans Initiative technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Oceans Initiative partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)corePartnered with IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group to create the Animal Counting Toolkit for low-cost marine mammal population assessments.
- NOAA FisheriescorePartnered with NOAA Fisheries' Southwest Science Center to build the Animal Counting Toolkit and develop statistical tools for assessing marine mammal bycatch in data-poor fisheries.
- University of WashingtoncoreCollaborated with fisheries scientists at UW on a two-year working group to build statistical tools for the Animal Counting Toolkit.
- Port of VancouvercoreWorking with Port of Vancouver to study effectiveness of voluntary vessel slowdown in reducing noise for endangered killer whales.
- University of St AndrewscorePartnered with Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling (CREEM) for statistical analysis guidance and distance sampling methods.
- CyberTrackercoreSoftware partner for the Animal Counting Toolkit using GPS-enabled handheld computers for field data collection.
- SeaDoc SocietycorePartnership with SeaDoc to encourage wider contributions to the Pacific white-sided dolphin photo-identification catalogue.
- Curtin UniversitycoreWorked with researchers from Curtin University to measure underwater noise from commercial jets in Bali and Australia.
- Conservation International IndonesiaminorPartnered with Conservation International Indonesia on underwater noise research.
- Udayana UniversityminorCollaborated with Udayana University on noise level measurements from coastal airport runways.
- Alexandra MortoncoreDr. Erin Ashe built upon Alexandra Morton's 20+ years of photo-identification data on Pacific white-sided dolphins in the Broughton Archipelago.
- SMRU ConsultingminorWorking with SMRU Consulting to explore trade-offs between ship noise levels and duration of exposure for whales.
- Okapi Wildlife AssociatescoreDr. Randall Reeves from Okapi Wildlife Associates and IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group co-built the Animal Counting Toolkit.
- Fundacion OmachaminorApplied the Animal Counting Toolkit to Amazon river dolphins with Fundacion Omacha in Colombia.
- National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) JapancoreCo-authored the Science paper on deep-sea mining noise pollution with AIST researchers.
- University of HawaiicoreCollaborated with University of Hawaii on deep-sea mining acoustic impact research.
- AlimosphereminorPartnered with Alimosphere to teach female early-career scientists how to pilot unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) for marine mammal science.
- Cornell UniversitycorePartnership with Cornell to model acoustic habitat loss due to shipping noise and screen hydrophone recordings for whale and dolphin calls.
- Puget Sound PartnershipcoreSelected by PSP to help build foundation for measuring ocean noise in Puget Sound as a new Vital Sign.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Oceans Initiative competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Oceans Initiative social profiles
Digital presenceOceans Initiative financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Oceans Initiative leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Oceans Initiative funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Oceans Initiative M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Oceans Initiative
What does Oceans Initiative do?
Oceans Initiative conducts use-inspired conservation science to identify marine species most in need of protection and reduce human impacts on marine ecosystems. They develop open-access tools like the Animal Counting Toolkit for low-cost marine mammal population assessments and conduct long-term research on ocean noise, sustainable fisheries, and climate resilience. Their work combines field research methods (photo-identification, acoustic monitoring, theodolite tracking) with statistical modeling to inform conservation policy.
Is Oceans Initiative a public or private company?
Oceans Initiative is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Oceans Initiative founded?
Oceans Initiative was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Oceans Initiative based?
Oceans Initiative is headquartered in Seattle, United States, in the North America region.
How does Oceans Initiative make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Donations and charitable contributions are the primary driver. The others are foundation and government grants and adopt a Dolphin program.
Does Oceans Initiative have an API?
No public API is recorded for Oceans Initiative.
What industry is Oceans Initiative in?
Oceans Initiative's product category is Marine Conservation Research. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAGAE, Marine & Freshwater Conservation, with a secondary code of EUAHAHAB, Aquatic Ecology & Fisheries Assessments. Its NAICS code is 92412 and its SIC code is 8731.