[ Intro music ] >> It all started five years ago.

When I attended my first environmental camp, at the age of six.

I went to a Turtle Nursing Center.

Where I got to see many species of turtles there.

There were green turtles, Hawksbill all over the place.

But there was one species that was missing.

The Leatherback turtles, which got me curious.

>> Today we're here at the Phuket Marine Biological Center.

Where we're going to meet a fishery biologist, Senior Professional Level, Ajon Huronganhe, who has done significant research for MESU, which is the Marine Endangered Species Unit.

>> Visiting the MESU Department was an exciting day to experience.

I'll be meeting with the first person in Thailand who has been successful in raising the leatherback turtles for two years.

This is Hatin Mryung.

This stretch of beach is a part of the last habitat of the leatherback turtles.

I have heard that there has been sightings of turtle tracks.

They believe that those tracks were made by a mother turtle.

[ Music ] >> As we know all this trash is very hazardous to all the marine animals, including every species of turtle like the leatherback turtles.

And so it's better to prevent this by collecting trash along the beach.

Hoping to help save marine animals.

The plastic that we find along the beach looks like jellyfish, which is what turtles eat.

>> The Park Superintendent, Winyah Brado, he told me he remembered there were thousands of turtle nests on Thailand shores every year.

But now there are only seven to eight turtle nests a year.

>> Right now we're at Hibunquon, for 56 days since the mother leatherback turtle, Elsa, has came to lay her eggs here.

Today we're going to investigate nest number five.

That the mother leatherback turtle has laid.

Since 3:00 in the morning to now, the nest has sunken by 10 centimeters and is one foot circumference.

We will come to observe.

>> We expected the hatchlings to emerge from the nest in a few hours.

Right now it's been more than 20 hours since the whole sank.

We are so worried.

This is unusual.

But he decide he and his team must do something to help this nest by digging them out.

I'm scared from not knowing what we're about to discover underneath the sand.

Were they all dead?

After the first layer of sand has been removed, I'm relieved to see at least one of them is alive.

Our excavation has revealed that the turtles are exhausted from trying to dig their way out from the hard sand.

I saw hatchlings emerge from the nest once three years ago.

Full of energy and were quick on their feet running into the ocean.

But these hatchlings were exhausted.

And weren't moving much, which is disheartening.

[ Music ] >> My anxiety turned to relief as soon as I saw the baby turtles starting to stir.

[ Music ] >> It's too hard for the turtles to get out by themselves.

Only 79% of the leatherback turtles survived.

And we're going to release the other leatherback turtles right now.

Yeah.

So that's basically everything.

But like, we did that.

But we also did that to collect eggs that might still be fermented but like haven't hatched yet.

So we look through, open some and then like most die.

Except this one egg that hasn't hatched yet.

So we're going to put in the ICU box.

I feel very disappointed how we have to interfere with like natural living thing that shouldn't need a human's help.

But in the end we have to help it because - because we created a problem like climate change, rising sea water could possible rot the nest.

There's many factors that could probably - that probably can effect leatherback turtles by a lot.

And so this is something that I feel bad for leatherback turtles where I - I create a problem where I have to help them.

Yeah.

[ Music ] >> We are about to release the leatherback turtles into the ocean.

And it's way of releasing them.

And when they rush into the ocean it's called frenzy swimming.

How they would all go the same time, safety in numbers.

It's the ocean hoping for - hoping that two or three will come back.

>> Seeing all these hatchlings now running towards the ocean is a wonderous site to behold.

[ Music ] >> I'm happy to see that they can get to the ocean safely.

Surviving the land part.

Now they will face the next phase of trying to survive from sea predators and ocean trash.

[ Music ] >> In the next 25 to 30 years from now some of these hatchlings will come back to this home.

Where they will lay their eggs once more.

As they embark on their lifelong journey into the vast oceans.

We will need to do our best to look after our home, their home.

So that they will still have a home to come back to.

[ Music ] >> With small steps of keeping our beach and ocean clean, we will be a responsible citizen who can preserve our nature and this world for future generations to come.

[ Music ] >> After filming this documentary for almost two years now.

It is shocking to see how in a person's lifespan, human's can drive a species to the verge of extinction.

If all these conservation efforts towards the leatherback turtle, and it's habitat, land and ocean.

The leatherback turtle species might be able to thrive once again.