The waters surrounding the Mariana Islands have some of the highest levels of biodiversity in the United States. We are surrounded by migrating whales and turtles, coral reefs and hundreds of species of fish, some found nowhere else on the planet.
The iconic Marianas Trench, the deepest ocean trench yet discovered, lies in our backyard. For more than three thousand years our islands have been home to CHamoru people who hold and practice Indigenous knowledge and values. This knowledge helped our people feed their families and protect their land and ocean for generations.
The above excerpt was originally published in Pacific Daily News.
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