What are Tire Wear Particles?

What do you think about when you hear the words “microplastic pollution?” Your mind may immediately go to imagery of colorful fragmented plastics broken off from bottles, buckets and other items we use in our everyday lives. Or, perhaps, you imagine a pile of microplastic fibers—the tiny, squiggly, spaghetti-shaped plastics that shed from our synthetic clothing. You may be surprised to hear there is another major source of microplastic pollution that’s hiding in plain sight, quite literally under our feet, that might change how you think about microplastics: tire particles.

We all know tires wear down over time—that’s why we have to replace them on our cars roughly every 60,000 miles or so. Every time a vehicle accelerates, brakes or simply drives down the road, the friction between its tires and the pavement creates tiny fragments of rubber, known as tire wear particles.

Driving a car or even riding in a bus is a bit like dragging an eraser across the planet, except the crumbs are microplastics. Toxic microplastics.

Dr. Britta Baechler

Director, Ocean Plastics Research, as quoted in Eos magazine

Tires are made from a complex mix of natural and synthetic rubber along with a range of additives, fillers and chemical compounds—some of which, like the preservative 6PPD, have been shown to be highly toxic to coho salmon when they break down into derivative product 6PPD-Q in the environment—even in tiny concentrations.

Some studies have shown that a single vehicle’s tires can emit more than two trillion particles per mile driven—and that the average person generates nearly two pounds of tire particles per year! Once these particles are shed from tires, they don’t just disappear. Some are small and light enough to become airborne, drifting away from roadways as dust. Others settle on road surfaces, where they accumulate until the next heavy rain washes them into storm drains and from there, into streams, rivers and eventually the ocean.

That’s why tire wear particles are now considered one of the top sources of microplastics to the environment. In fact, until recent developments in analytical methods, scientists weren’t reliably able to detect tire wear particles in microplastic counts—thus, these pesky microplastics may have been evading our detection for years.

Why green infrastructure may be one of our best near-term solutions

Unlike some sources of plastic pollution, we can’t simply stop driving overnight. Reformulating tire rubber to be less toxic or shed less material, while promising, will take time to develop, test and scale across the global vehicle fleet. So, what can we do about tire wear particle pollution right now?

This is where green infrastructure comes in. Green infrastructure refers to engineered natural systems (things like bioswales, rain gardens, roadside buffers and permeable pavement) that are designed to slow down, filter and treat stormwater before it reaches rivers, lakes and coastlines. Instead of routing runoff directly into storm drains and out to sea, green infrastructure gives contaminated water a chance to percolate through soil, plants and other natural filtration media, which helps trap microplastics, including tire wear particles, preventing them moving further downstream.

Early research on green infrastructure has been promising, showing that these systems are quite effective at capturing microplastics and other contaminants carried in road runoff. But there’s a critical piece we still don’t fully understand: What would it take to scale up green infrastructure across an entire city, and how much of a dent would that actually make in long-term tire wear particle pollution?

Our research on green infrastructure capture of tire wear particles

Funded by the Tire Industry Project, our plastics science and policy teams at Ocean Conservancy have partnered with the University of Toronto on a new study evaluating the costs and benefits of scaling up green infrastructure at the city level specifically to capture tire wear particles.

If you happen to be driving on the roadways of Portland, Oregon, you may spot our scientists crouched over, precariously scooping dirt with spoons from a sample area on the roadside. Don’t be alarmed—that’s just us doing science! Feel free to give us a wave.

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Ocean Conservancy is currently working to:

• Quantify the scale of pollution: Collect road dust samples from 30 cities globally to measure both total microplastic and tire wear particle concentrations and determine how different variables (population density, road size, rainfall) might influence those values.
• Assess feasibility: Determine what it would take realistically—logistically, financially and spatially—to scale up green infrastructure across an entire city.
• Model positive impacts: Estimate how much city-scale green infrastructure could reduce tire wear particle pollution entering aquatic ecosystems.
• Compare across cities: Understand how well these solutions might translate across different urban contexts, focusing on Portland, Oregon; Toronto, Canada; and London, England as case-study cities.
• Make our findings accessible: Produce a public-facing toolkit to help city planners, engineers and advocates guide real-world implementation of infrastructure that captures tire-wire particles. 

By pairing rigorous science with practical guidance, we hope to help cities move from asking “Could this work?” to confidently building solutions that we know can be effective.

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How can I help?

Tire wear particle pollution can feel like an overwhelming problem. After all, it’s tied to transportation, which most of us rely on every day. But that’s exactly why research like this matters: It gives us a real, near-term path forward that doesn’t require waiting for the entire global transportation system to change first.

You can help by staying engaged with Ocean Conservancy as we continue to dig into solutions for the plastic pollution crisis—one roadway, one storm drain and one city at a time. Together, we can keep working toward a world and ocean free of plastic pollution, forever and for everyone.

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How Ocean Animals Beat the Heat—and the Cold

While our ocean may seem like one giant body of water, its temperatures fluctuate widely. Temperatures can range from below freezing in the deep waters of Antarctica to more than 100°F in shallow coastal waters and everywhere in between. And unlike humans, marine animals can’t just blast the air conditioning or put on a fleecy jacket when they get uncomfortable. Rather, years of evolution have equipped these creatures with several remarkable ways to regulate body temperature and survive in extreme conditions.

Thermoregulation—the process by which animals (and even humans!) maintain their internal body temperatures—is critically important to their survival. Discover how these amazing animals have adapted to life in extreme temperatures.

How do leatherback sea turtles stay warm in cold seas?

Sea turtles are cold-blooded (also known as ectothermic), which means that they rely on external sources of heat. This is why you’ll see turtles, alligators and other reptiles basking in the sun to warm up or certain fish burrowing in the bottom of a lake during freezing months. So, how are leatherback sea turtles able to survive when following swarms of sea jellies to deep, near-freezing waters as far north as Norway?

Leatherbacks rely on an adaptation strategy called countercurrent heat exchange that helps them conserve body heat. The arteries responsible for carrying warm blood from the heart sit right beside the veins bringing in cooler blood from the limbs—the warmth from the arteries transfers to that cooler blood to warm it up before it flows back throughout the body. This exchange can also be reversed when leatherbacks swim back south during nesting season.

In addition to the countercurrent heat exchange, leatherbacks are also gigantothermic. This means that leatherbacks, the largest sea turtle species, can maintain a steady, warm body temperature. Their large body size combined with thick layers of oily, insulating fat and a leathery shell traps internal heat and reduces heat loss.

Are bluefin tuna cold-blooded?

Speaking of heat exchange… While most fish are ectothermic, there are a few that are regionally warm-blooded, or endothermic. Bluefin tuna, for example, are able to conserve heat in specific parts of their body (muscles, viscera, eyes and brain) while their heart remains cold, but not without significant energy expenditure and they cannot keep this up consistently. The bluefin tuna’s heat exchange enables a dense, intertwined system of blood vessels, also known as a “rete mirabile” or “wonderful net” that can reclaim heat. This allows them to hunt in colder waters and maintain their fast reflexes that help them preserve their top predator status.

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Why don’t fish freeze in Antarctica?

Similar to how antifreeze works in your car by disrupting water’s ability to form ice crystals, preventing your car engine from cracking under sub-zero temperatures, certain species of fish create specialized “antifreeze” proteins that prevent the formation of ice in the fish cells and body fluids. Rather than resisting these extreme temperatures that would otherwise freeze them in place, certain fish have developed a rather marvelous adaptation using Antifreeze Glycoproteins (AFGPs). These AFGPs circulate in the bloodstream, disrupting the water molecules to the point where they cannot bond together to form crystals. AFGPs are found in Antarctic notothenioids like the Antarctic toothfish, dragonfish and icefish, as well as the northern cod.

Additionally, Antarctic icefish are the only vertebrates known to have no red blood cells (RBCs) Yep—you read that right. These fish were discovered in 1928 with milky-white blood containing precisely zero hemoglobin. So, how do these fish get the oxygen required for all living creatures on Earth? Antarctic icefish absorb oxygen directly into their blood plasma by diffusing it through their gills and super thin skin. Their wide blood vessels and large hearts allow their very cold and watery blood to move quickly and easily through their circulatory system. No RBCs and antifreeze proteins? Antarctic icefish are an evolutionary marvel. And it appears they’re not alone. In 2025, scientists discovered Asian noodlefishes have completely lost their myoglobin and hemoglobin genes. 

What ocean animals can survive on the floor of the deep sea?

Not many animals have what it takes to survive on the sea floor. However, there are a few creative communities of critters that manage to survive by taking advantage of the special circumstances on the sea floor. Enter hydrothermal vents. Hydrothermal vents are like deep-sea hot springs that form in areas with underwater volcanic activity, where moving tectonic plates create fissures in the ocean floor. Magma-heated water escapes from inside the earth through these cracks in the seafloor, releasing a buffet of rich minerals from Earth’s crust, like sulfur and calcium.

What creature could thrive in waters that fluctuate from near freezing to more than 400°F when these vents erupt? Riftia tubeworms, of course! Commonly known as giant tubeworms or Riftia pachyptila, these worms strategically place themselves in mixed-temperature zones, mere inches between hydrothermal vents. These worms can grow to eight feet long and have a symbiotic relationship with chemosynthetic bacteria. The tube worm absorbs oxygen and hydrogen sulfide through its bright red appendage called a plume, which the bacteria then use in the process of chemosynthesis. In turn, the worm receives energy from the bacteria.

Other animals live on the vents, too, including other worms, deep-sea mussels, gastropods and deep-sea octopuses. There are even zoarcid fish that specialize in preying on invertebrates that live on hydrothermal vents. Unlike other deep-sea creatures that need to withstand very cold waters, these guys need to be able to handle the heat—the water around hydrothermal vents can reach up to 660 degrees Fahrenheit!

As you can see, thermoregulation can be the difference between life and death in extreme environments throughout the ocean. While these adaptations showcase incredible evolutionary wonders, they also help scientists understand how species respond to a changing climate. Threats like historic marine heatwaves, intense hurricanes fueled by warming waters and mass coral bleaching events paint a clear picture: The climate crisis is here, and it will only get worse without immediate action. Join us in calling for our elected leaders to take action to mitigate climate change now.

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What Kansas Can Teach Us About NOAA

If you asked most people in America which states depend on the ocean, Kansas would probably not top the list.

No beaches. No ports. No salt air.

But that is exactly why Kansas is such a powerful reminder of something ocean lovers everywhere have long understood: The ocean does not stop mattering at the shoreline.

In landlocked states like Kansas, the ocean shows up as a spring tornado warning; a summer drought outlook; a pilot’s weather briefing before takeoff. It shows up in the forecasts that ranchers use to make hard decisions during dry months and in the rainfall data engineers use to design roads, bridges and stormwater systems. And it shows up in the federal science that makes all that possible—even if most people never see it.

That is the point of Ocean Conservancy’s new report: As the eyes and ears for both the ocean and the atmosphere, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is not a nice-to-have for Kansas. It is essential infrastructure.

At first glance, that might sound surprising. How can a landlocked state depend so heavily on an agency many people associate with the ocean?

Because Kansas weather does not begin at the Kansas border.

Warm ocean moisture from the Gulf helps fuel the thunderstorms and flood-producing systems that sweep across the Great Plains. Ocean temperature patterns in the Pacific Ocean help shape drought and seasonal outlooks. Satellites orbiting overhead and ocean sensors operating thousands of miles away feed the models forecasters use to tell communities what is coming next.

This system is one of the many functions of NOAA. NOAA is the federal agency responsible for monitoring the ocean and atmosphere, conducting research that informs weather forecasting, fishery management and climate signals. In Kansas, NOAA is a part of almost every severe weather forecast, drought outlook and flood warning the state receives. By the time a warning reaches a phone in Wichita or a forecast reaches a farmer in western Kansas, it is already the product of NOAA’s bigger, global and ocean-centric chain of information.

The ocean is part of everyday life in Kansas—even if most people don’t think of it that way. That’s what makes Kansas such an important case study. And in Kansas, the stakes are often high.

Kansas is a state where severe weather is part of life. When storms build and tornadoes form, minutes matter. Extra lead time can mean the difference between getting your family into a basement, moving patients to safety or clearing workers from a construction site. That lead time depends on NOAA’s entire system working together: observations, satellites, models, local forecasting and reliable public alerts.

Conversations about NOAA funding can be misleading—this agency isn’t just a coastal concern—or just a weather app with a federal logo. NOAA is much bigger than the forecast people see on their phones.

The visible part of NOAA’s work is the downstream result. Upstream are the satellites, ocean observations, research programs, data systems and modeling capabilities that make accurate forecasts and useful warnings possible in the first place. If those upstream pieces are cut or weakened, the impacts do not stay neatly contained in some obscure government budget line. They show up in our everyday lives as less reliable guidance, less lead time and more uncertainty for communities that can least afford to guess.

You cannot pull pieces out of that system and expect the whole thing to keep working the same way. This is more than a story about Kansas. This is a story about connection.

The ocean influences weather, water and risks far inland. It shapes the lives of people who might never even get the chance to visit the coast. And it reminds us that protecting the ocean also means protecting the science and public systems that help communities understand a changing world.

Kansas may be far from the shoreline but it is not disconnected from the ocean. No state is, no community is. Read our full report to see how ocean data become Kansas decisions—and why protecting NOAA and its critical funding means protecting communities far beyond the coast.

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We Know the Moon Better Than the Deep Sea

You may have heard: Scientists have more detailed maps of the moon than of the deep seafloor. This is because our moon is airless, waterless and directly observable from orbit, while the deep seafloor is hidden under miles of opaque ocean. The deep seafloor is also shockingly vast, covering over two-thirds of the Earth’s surface—roughly 10 times greater than the moon’s surface area. But visibility and size tell only part of the story.

So, what else makes the deep sea, which is sitting right in our own backyard, harder to explore than the moon, which is more than 200,000 miles away? How do scientists manage to study the deep sea despite the obstacles to observation? And why does deep-sea exploration matter now more than ever?

What is the deep sea, and why is it so hard to explore?

Extreme conditions make the deep sea the least-explored biome on Earth. The deep sea begins at 200 meters (656 ft.) below the surface, where sunlight all but disappears and the average temperature drops to 4°C (39°F).

Water pressure climbs fast, too, increasing by one atmosphere for every 10 meters (32.8 ft.) of descent. (An “atmosphere” is a standard unit of pressure defined as the average air pressure at sea level.) That means at 200 meters deep, you’d feel the equivalent of 21 atmospheres—one from the air above and 20 from the water around you.

​The near-total darkness, freezing temperatures and crushing pressure, coupled with the sheer size of the ocean, make the deep sea incredibly difficult to study. As a result, scientists have visually observed less than 0.001 percent of the deep seafloor.

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How scientists study the deep sea

While scientists have seen only a small portion of the deep sea, the study of this part of our ocean has come a long way over the last century. 

​In the late 1800s, the HMS Challenger expedition conducted the first comprehensive survey of the world’s oceans, using dredges and trawls to collect deep-sea samples. This laid the groundwork for modern oceanography.

From the early to mid-1900s, exploration shifted from direct human observation to indirect study with new tools. Technological advances like sonar allowed scientists to map the seafloor and sample its sediment without ever leaving the surface. The 1960s brought additional developments like remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), maneuverable underwater robots tethered to a surface vessel. 

In the 1980s, Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) took things further. These untethered robotic submersibles operate independently on pre-programmed mission profiles, enabling more sophisticated sampling and mapping of the ocean floor.

Today, a whole suite of technologies, including ROVs, AUVs and advanced underwater surveying methods, lets scientists study the deep sea more precisely than ever.

Why does deep-sea exploration matter?

​We all depend on our ocean more than we realize, and studying the deep sea has never been this important.

Deep-sea observation systems, like the Ocean Observatories Initiative, track coastal environments, marine ecosystems and the powerful currents that drive our climate. This data helps scientists predict earthquakes, forecast storms, monitor fishery health and anticipate coastal flooding.​

But our ocean faces growing threats, like deep-sea mining. This practice, which involves extracting mineral deposits from the ocean floor, is expanding rapidly worldwide and could cause major, irreversible environmental damage. Deep-sea mining threatens fragile ocean ecosystems and coastal communities by causing irreversible habitat destruction, disrupting fisheries and food security, harming biodiversity, and creating significant economic risks.

Ocean Conservancy is protecting our ocean from today’s greatest threats, and we need you in this fight. Take action now to help us defend our ocean against deep-sea mining.

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Microplastic Pollution Research at Sea

I have been studying plastic pollution for more than a decade. I’ve analyzed hundreds of samples in labs, pored over data and spent years thinking hard about where plastics go once they leave our hands and enter the environment. I love doing work on the water—this was a big part of my previous professional roles in Alaska and in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands.

And here’s where it took me! I was thrilled to have the opportunity to join the first leg of eXXpedition’s voyage in the South Pacific this past spring, trading my lab coat for a lifejacket to study microplastics at sea. Sailing from Auckland, New Zealand, to the Bay of Islands aboard the 70-foot research vessel Wind Shift over 10 days, our crew of 12 women conducted ocean water-surface sampling via manta tow nets (a long cone-shaped mesh net), cleaned up debris on remote beaches and examined city streets with measuring tapes and field equipment. Our purpose? To collect key data to help us better understand the flow of plastics from land to sea.

Our all-female guest crew—hence the XX in “eXXpedition”—brought aboard expertise from the fields of structural engineering, circular economy strategy, sustainable fashion, plastics research, robotics and more. Together, we represented a remarkable cross-section of disciplines united around a shared concern for the health of our ocean.

Seeing it with my own eyes

We found plastics of all shapes and sizes everywhere we went—in the city streets of Auckland, while crossing the Hauraki Gulf and even at Aotea Great Barrier Island (one of the most remote and protected stretches of New Zealand’s coastline). Our ocean is vast and some of these places felt far removed from the centers of human activity, but this eXXpedition was a good reminder that plastic doesn’t respect remoteness. It moves, accumulates and shows up where we least expect.

Working alongside local NGO Sustainable Coastlines, we arrived on a remote stretch of beach on Aotea Great Barrier Island to audit and clean up any plastics we came across. What we found there told the same story our Auckland street surveys did: We found bottle caps, food packaging, fragments, plastic pellets and fishing debris. The everyday materials of modern life—but weathered, broken and scattered.

Science at sea

One of my favorite parts of the voyage (which was also one of the most challenging, if I’m being honest!) was the sea-surface manta trawl analyses we did onboard. I found out quickly that sorting microplastics from krill-laden seawater samples under a microscope while sailing is not for the faint of stomach.

The most common plastic culprit we found in those samples? Microplastic fibers. This type of microplastic is no wider than a human hair and is the most common type of microplastic found in the environment. Microplastic fibers can come from a variety of sources like cigarette butts, weathered ropes or wet wipes, but actually, most microplastic fibers shed from synthetic clothing and textiles. Laundering is a major source— shockingly, a single load of laundry can generate up to 18 million microfibers.

And yet, we found these tiny plastic fibers floating in the ocean many miles away from the nearest washing machine.

In my lab research, I have found microplastic fibers time and time again, but there’s something even more sobering about hand-picking them out of a seawater sample collected from pristine-looking waters. It was a good reminder of why understanding where plastic comes from, how it moves and where it ends up is so critical to addressing the problem at its roots.

Filter Out NSFW Microplastics

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What I’m bringing back

Studying plastic pollution from the deck of a boat in some of the most remote waters in the Southern Hemisphere made me appreciate the work I do even more. It also made me appreciate how important people are in this giant puzzle of plastic pollution solutions. The plastic pollution crisis is a human problem, and solving it requires all of us. The courage and dedication of the women I shared those 10 days with is something I won’t forget. Going to sea, doing the science and pushing through discomfort to collect data that matters was not easy. We were seasick some days and exhilarated others. Despite that fact, we showed up for it fully, every day.

The plastic is out there, even in far-flung corners of the ocean. And the answer is not to be paralyzed by that fact, but to use it as fuel. Every sample we collected is now a data point in a larger story about where plastic comes from and where it goes. Every cleanup, every surface trawl, every street block walked and every hour spent at a microscope are parts of building the evidence base that informs policies, regulations and systems-level changes that can actually turn this crisis around.

Cleaning up beaches and coastlines is valuable and necessary work. But we also must stop plastic from entering the ocean in the first place—through stronger policy, better product design and real investment in waste management infrastructure everywhere. Luckily, when it comes to the most common microplastics in the ocean— microplastic fibers—there is already an effective, affordable solution to immediately reduce microplastics coming from our laundry by roughly 90%: washing machine filters. These filters act just like laundry lint filters in our dryers, capturing fibers in tightly-woven mesh and effectively preventing them from leaving our homes and leaking into the environment.

What can you do?

There’s no better time to tackle plastic pollution than right now, during Plastic Free July! Take two minutes to add your name and call on your elected leaders to combat those pesky, dangerous microfibers that are pouring into our ocean daily—like the ones I found from my samples at sea. Together, we can stop plastic pollution at the source and protect our ocean forever and for everyone.

My biggest takeaways from this experience? People are remarkable. Our ocean is remarkable. And our ocean is worth fighting for, including from 70 feet of sailing vessel in the South Pacific, staring down a microscope with a pair of tweezers and a queasy stomach.

The eXXpedition South Pacific I voyage ran from April 27 to May 6, 2026, sailing from Auckland to the Bay of Islands. Learn more about the research team and our itinerary at https://exxpedition.com/voyage/auckland-to-bay-of-islands/.

Images from the eXXpedition

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2026 Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest Winners

Our annual Photo Contest is officially wrapped—and wow, you delivered! More than 1,000 ocean lovers shared their incredible ocean and wildlife photos. Thank you for keeping our ocean in focus during National Ocean Month and inspiring us with your creativity.

Now it’s time to meet the favorites. See the stunning photos that captured the hearts of our judges, staff and fellow ocean lovers.

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Judges Choice Winner:
“Walrus Nursing” by Richard Rothstein

Our group was in a small skiff slowly moving among the icebergs when we came upon the scene in the image. Two female walruses were in what appeared to be a protective posture as one of the females was nursing a small calf. We remained a very respectable distance and did not approach. The walruses seemed to completely tolerate our presence as there appeared to be no alteration of their natural behavior. This was my first encounter with walruses, and it was truly an experience of a lifetime!!

Richard Rothstein

2026 Judges Choice Winner

A word from the judges:

“There’s such tenderness in this Arctic moment—two adult walruses framing the calf nursing between them, all mirrored in the glassy meltwater below. That reflection doubles the impact and gives the composition a beautiful symmetry, and the soft, even light shows off every wrinkle and whisker. A quiet, intimate family portrait set against the fragile backdrop of the sea ice these animals depend on.” – Angela J. Farmer

“I love this photograph!  The composition is excellent with the reflections and the ice bergs in the background balancing the photograph.  I also appreciate that the photographer captured this photo and it does not appear like the animals were stressed out in any way.  They are acting and behaving natural in their natural habitat.  Very important to me as a photographer to not disturb the animals by my presence.  Good job!” – Harvey Hergett

“…Really beautiful and powerful. I loved the calm moment, the reflection and the connection between the walruses. It feels very natural, honest and emotional.” – Andrés Ballesteros

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Staff Choice Winner:
“The Lone Ranger” by Rowan Dear

(Rowan’s Instagram; Rowan’s Website)

A large male Giant Cuttlefish cruises around the shoreline of Whyalla, looking for a mate this season. Most of the Cuttlefish here are smaller and similar size to the females, however you will see some very large males who are 3-4 times the size of some males who will swim around and bully and dominate the other males and sometimes guard up to 3 females. The larger males are probably 2 years old and have been eating their way through summer waiting for the mating season in winter.

Rowan Dear

2026 Staff Choice Winner

A word from the judges:

“This is an absolute showstopper—the sunburst breaking through the surface turns an ordinary dive into something almost cinematic. The cuttlefish’s intricate textures and shifting purple-to-copper tones are stunning, and the way the light rays guide your eye right down to it shows real mastery of natural underwater lighting. A rich, immersive image that makes you feel like you’re in the water with him.” – Angela J. Farmer

“I liked the angle of the shot as shooting upward on the subject gives it a more majestic feel.” – Harvey Hergett

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People’s Choice Winner:
“Sweet Seal” by Nicole Pellegrino

(Nicole’s Instagram; Nicole’s Website)

This sweet seal was resting on the shore of Long Beach, NY on a bright sunny day in April 2024.

Nicole Pellegrino

2026 People’s Choice Winner

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A huge thank you to everyone who entered, voted, shared and cheered on this year’s contest. And a mighty thanks to our expert judges: Angela J. Farmer, Harvey Hergett and Andrés Ballesteros. Congratulations to all our talented photographers—we can’t wait to see what you capture in 2027!

Enjoy the contest’s honorable mentions below and we’ll SEA you next year.

Honorable Mentions

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