I tell a story about my trip with some friends to the Buffalo Bills game last Sunday. It was crazy hot!!! The Bills stadium ran out of bottled water by half time and wouldn't give us regular tap water. It sucked because it was crazy hot!!! So hot!!! And no water equals not a great day until more bottled water showed up. 

I want to know why we never see tap water in public anymore?!?!?!

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Graduate student life is fun when you look back on it after 15 years. You realize that you had so many freedoms and you didn't have to worry about the "real world" yet; however, the real world hits you as a graduate student because you have to pay bills, tuition, and live life with a very low salary. Some people accept that part of life and hope for the best, while others go out and work for extra money to be able to pay for their bills (rent, food, etc.). 

An article on NatureJobs.com seems to suggest that every graduate student should have a side hustle/job to make ends meet and provide a few tips to accomplish this goal. The problem is they never talk about how difficult it is to have a side hustle. 

I talk about my experience trying to have a side hustle and the sacrifices I had to make and the conflicts it caused (often with my supervisor). Take a listen and let me know what you think in our Facebook Group (link below).

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

We are featuring another episode of the Marine Conservation Happy Hour where Dr. Scarlett Smash recounts her and her husband's experience of evacuating the state of Florida along with millions of other people. Let's just say water and gas were in limited quantity and it was hot and sticky. I will let Smash tell you the rest.

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

There are quite a few spectacular things that go on at the International Marine Conservation Congress every year; however, one of my favourites is the Tales From The Sea. 

It's an event that goes on in a theatre where Marine Scientists and Conservationists stand up in front of an audience and tell them a story about an experience during their life that involves the Ocean in some sort of way. 

Today, you are going to hear 3 of those stories that I loved hearing. You can listen to the stories in this episode and you can go watch the episode as it was filmed in front of a live audience.

I'm sharing these stories because it's a great way for you to connect with more people who work in the Marine Science and Conservation fields.

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Today's stories have a couple of things in common: 1) All stories are about invertebrates and, 2) You have to find out at the end of the episode. 

I thought I would pick these stories to discuss because I wanted to cover something a little different to show you that there are some great discoveries and some concerns that need to be addressed in Marine Science and Conservation.

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Dr. Ed Hind-Ozan joins me on this episode of Ocean Talk Friday to discuss how conferences benefit people in the field of Marine Science and Conservation. Conferences are great for networking, collaborating on future projects and sharing information about different projects and strategies for the Ocean's best interest. 

Ed is the chair of the International Marine Conservation Congress that will take place in Malaysia in 2018 and shared his experience at the past conferences. 

We took the time to discuss some of the papers that were published recently from discussions and sessions arising from the IMCC 4 meeting in St. John's, Newfoundland. Here are the stories that we covered today:
1) Conch fisheries management
2) Geovisualizations Paper 1 and Paper 2
3) Gender Inequality at Marine Conservation Conferences

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

The Canadian Government has a long relationship with the First Nations groups across Canada; however, the relationship sucks. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a campaign promise to reconcile Canada's relationship with First Nations groups in Canada. He's been Prime Minister for almost 2 years, but hasn't done much to help...in fact, people say he's done the opposite. An article in the National Post covers a story where the Canadian Government gave the opportunity for a number of First Nations groups to bid on 25% of the quota for Arctic Surf Clam.

I also talk about a study that provides 3 ways that the East Coast of the US is sinking and will be prone to flooding. 

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Hurricane Irma made landfall in Florida over the weekend reeking havoc in different counties across the state as it did across many Caribbean Islands. As people in the path of Irma checked in as safe on social media and shared pictures and videos of what they witnessed, an interesting thing popped up in some of the videos.

Two people shared pictures and videos of the ocean water missing along their coasts. One person's video in Long Island, Bahamas showed water missing from his dock as far as the eye can see. The other video shows a manatee that was stranded due to the lack of water caused by the hurricane. Listen to the podcast to find out why this happened.

Here are some links if you would like to help out:
1) Global Giving Fund
2) Turks & Caicos - This was set up by Dr. Edward Hind-Ozan.

The second story I cover today is about a study showing why fish eat plastic that is plaguing our Ocean. I talk about the study and the results and how it affects humans as predators. 

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Nathan Johnson joins us on Ocean Talk Friday after a busy summer. Today we talk about the following articles:

1) Canada designates it's largest conservation area (not an MPA, but similar);
2) Hawaiian National Monument gets an award for doing great work;
3) Can Aquaculture supply the world with seafood in a sustainable way; and,
4) NASA is using satellites to help understand Antarctica ecology

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Raising Ocean Awareness through any means may not be enough to be successful at conserving and protecting the Ocean. I know! I was surprised to hear that as well. We often watch documentaries or participate in campaigns that try to raise awareness of Ocean issues, but they are not as effective (all of the time) in doing what is necessary: Change the behaviours of people to protect the Ocean from harm. 

The documentary "Chasing Coral" is a prime example. The movie did a great job to explain and highlight the devastating impact rising sea surface temperatures (from climate change) are having on corals; however, the film did not tell people how they could change their behaviour to reduce their contribution to climate change. The result was a whole lot of people feeling depressed about the Ocean without any guidance on how to change what was happening. 

Brian Day knows how to use a tool that is used by Coke to make them a corporate giant. The tool is called marketing and it's purpose is to change people's behaviour for a specific result. In Coke's case, they would like people to drink their product to make them feel happy. In the Ocean's case, Brian wants people to change a certain behaviour to stop the action the people were taking to further harm the Ocean. Sounds like common sense, right?

Unfortunately, not everyone one or every organization uses marketing in an effective way to change the world for social good, i.e. Social Marketing. Brian knows how to though and it works under the right circumstances.

Brian explains how to use social marketing to change people's behaviour around the Ocean to protect it in this episode.

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Whale sharks are one of the most iconic species in the world. As the largest fish, people are so captivated by their sight that they will travel thousands of miles just to get a glimpse of them in the wild. However, these sharks are also Endangered according to the IUCN Red List and you might be surprised to know that there isn't much known about these amazing fish. Especially, their population sizes and where they like to go.

A paper led by Jennifer McKinney estimated the population size and connectivity of the whale shark population in the Western And Central Atlantic Ocean (WSA) using software that identified individual whale sharks by the spots on their backs. 

I discuss how the pattern of spots on whale sharks in images taken by citizen scientists can be used to identify individual sharks and contribute to the scientific study.

Enjoy the podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to create a free pr=resource program for Ocean Citizen Scientists to help move Marine Science and Conservation forward by collecting information for various Citizen Science program. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign

Marine Conservation Careers seems to be on your mind as we covered it on a couple of episodes over the past week. Last Friday, we heard from 3 generations of Marine Conservationists on the challenges we faced in our career. It wasn't meant to scare you. It was meant to prepare you for the future (if you want a marine conservation career). 

I address some comments that I received on the episode from last week and build on what I hope will be a more inspiring message. 

I also discuss some comments I received from our Facebook Group on last episode where I covered how Climate Change made Hurricane Harvey worse. 

Here are the shows where I discuss Marine Conservation Careers in more detail:

1) Choosing You Marine Conservation Career
2) How to Become an Influencer for Your Marine Conservation Career
3) How To Volunteer to Get Experience in Marine Conservation
4) 5 Important Strategies to Implement When You Search for a Marine Conservation Job
5) How To Write A Cover Letter for a Marine Conservation Job
6) Writing a Resume to get a Marine Conservation Job
7) Preparing for the Interview for a Marine Conservation Job
8) Options for Your Marine Conservation Career
9) 3 Reasons to Attend a Marine Conservation Conference

Enjoy the Podcast!!!

Let me know what you think of the episode by joining our Facebook Group for the Podcast.

Support Speak Up For Blue's Efforts to build a platform to raise awareness for Marine Science and Conservation and help you live for a better Ocean. Contribute to our Patreon Campaign