Have you heard about Roz Savage? She attempting to be the first woman to row solo across the Pacific Ocean. Yes, row a boat, by herself, no escort boat, without a sail or motor, all by herself, across the entire Pacific Ocean. Did we mention that she's all be herself in the middle of the ocean?!?! Wow! And if that weren't enough, Roz is doing this all not for fame and fortune, but to raise awareness about the top environmental issues, such as climate change and marine debris.

In September 2008, Roz arrived in Honolulu after 100 days rowing across the ocean from San Francisco.  On May 24, 2009, she left the Waikiki Yacht Club on the second leg of her voyage to head into the South Pacific. Roz is expecting to arrive in Tuvalu or Samoa and then will continue her voyage to Australia in summer 2010.

So, why are you reading about this on the Project Niu website? Well, two BIG reasons. First, Roz is carrying on her boat the newest niu, Niu Hae Akala. The plan is for Roz to deploy it when she crosses the equator. We are excited about this because it will show us how marine debris might travel in the equatorial regions of the Pacific Ocean. Since all the Niu's that we have deployed from Hawaii have gone in a westerly direction, it seems that deploying a niu from a different location might provide some new information.

We are also writing about Roz Savage because if you check out Roz's website, you'll notice a tracking system very similar to that of Project Niu. In fact, the RozTracker, as it is called, was built by the Project Niu team using the same technologies that we use to track the niu's. Additionally, the RozTracker incorporates social media that Roz creates, such as blogs, podcasts, videos, or photos. So, wherever Roz is in the ocean when she creates those items, the map will show them in that spot. How cool is that?!?!

We hope that you'll go to Roz Savage's website and learn more about her mission for environmental awareness and her unbelievable adventure across the Pacific Ocean!