The other day, I was rummaging in my daughter’s toy chest and found her turtle puppet. “Look,” I told her, “Your turtle puppet!”

She wrinkled her nose, slapped a hand on her four-year-old hip, and informed me, “It’s not a turtle, Mommy, it’s a leatherback sea turtle.”

Well then! At least they had someone sticking up for them, eh?

It turns out that we, too, can stick up for the leatherback sea turtle today—albeit in a slightly less bossy manner.

The National Marine Fisheries Service is talking about increasing the area of protected leatherback sea turtle habitat by more than 70,000 square miles. This would include the coasts of Washington, California, and Oregon, making these shores, already critical habitat of the species, a place of refuge and protection for the endangered Pacific species. These waters, which provide integral migration passages and foraging space for the turtles, are in dire need of such protection and it’s very heartening to know that it’s close to becoming a reality.

This is a big deal, as it marks the first time in history for sea turtles to be awarded a critical habitat status in U.S. open ocean waters. It will set a precedent not just for the dwindling population of these majestic creatures but for others to follow, as well as an international example for other countries to hopefully emulate.

It’s only a proposal at the moment, which means your voice is needed to help make it real. It also doesn’t include some very key areas of habitat and commercial fishing gear regulations (such as nets or traps that entangle and kill the turtles) that both pose threats to the leatherback sea turtle.

Click here to send a letter to the U.S. Fisheries Service supporting this measure. Be sure to urge comprehensive protections overall, including the proposed measures as well as commercial fishing regulation. While the National Resource Defense Council has a letter ready for you to send, remember that editing it with your own strong (yet respectful) words can make it much more powerful.

Since the Fisheries Service is already proposing increased protection, be sure to express gratitude for the measure as well as support for it; then stress the importance of further protecting the species. Explain that the maintenance and recovery of the leatherback sea turtle population is important to you and your family, and that you wish to keep the species alive for further generations to enjoy.