When did plans to move Tokitae to a sea sanctuary begin?

Plans to move Tokitae (also known as Lolita) to a sea sanctuary or her home waters began gaining formal, concrete momentum in the early 2020s, though advocacy for her release goes back much further:

1990s — The Tokitae Foundation (later Orca Conservancy) developed one of the first organized proposals (1996) to return her to a sea-pen environment in the Pacific Northwest. That plan involved training her into a sling and transporting her back to her native waters in a controlled sea-pen, with the eventual goal of release. However, this plan was never supported by the Miami Seaquarium at the time.

• December 2022 — Under new ownership, the Miami Seaquarium’s leadership publicly shifted its stance, expressing openness to relocating Tokitae after retiring her from performances and ceasing her public appearances.
• March 30, 2023 — A formal, legally binding agreement was announced between the Miami Seaquarium, Friends of Toki (formerly Friends of Lolita), and philanthropist Jim Irsay to move Tokitae to an ocean sanctuary in the Salish Sea (off the Pacific Northwest), where she would be cared for under protected conditions closer to her natal waters. This can be seen as the first official plan with support from both Seaquarium management and outside partners to relocate her.

In short: community and nonprofit advocacy dates back decades, but official sanctuary relocation plans involving the facility and major partners took concrete shape beginning in late 2022, with the key public announcement in March 2023.