will allow the sperm whale population to rebound, and the more whales there are the more benefits domenicahorities will obtain. >> hurricane maria devastated those communities in 2017. today the island is continuing to rebuild and prepare for the future. francine baron heads the agency in charge of that effort. >> what was it about hurricane maria that made the leaders of this country say we have to do something? we really have to act. >> we suffered an equivalent of 226% loss of gdp. so we could see the trend and we realize that we needed to become much more resilient. >> when henrique sala came to you with this idea of creating a sanctuary for these whales what was his pitch to you? >> we see whale watching as an important part of our tourism product and it's something that needs to be protected, and the idea of creating greater protection for the whales is something that s very open to and we were very pleased with the suggestion that henrique made to create a recognized sanctuary for the whales. >> henrique sala compares it to a model that has worked in rwanda where protecting mountain