It's that time of year again for me to provide advice for students and early-career scientists/conservationists as people are going back to school or trying to find their first job. 

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I have been reflecting on the subject of collaboration as I work on a special project for this podcast (the project will be released next week!). Collaboration is a term and major theme of the project; however, over the past 6 years I noticed that people in Marine Science and Conservation are more competitive than they are collaborative. 

Now it could be the way the system is set up in terms of many organizations that have similar missions are competing for the same funding, but I also believe it starts with the people in all fields of marine science and conservation.

People in science podcasting are also acting this way. Some people are worried about the competition and ask why there is more than one podcast on a similar topic. I think it's great for podcasting and marine conservation. Take a listen to the episode to see why.

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Fisheries and Oceans Canada's (DFO) Whale Protection Program has several investigations open of illegal drone activity along the southern shores of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. 

The drones are being flown near marine mammals (whales, seals, and sea lions) causing disturbances and, in some cases, interfering with government activities surrounding whale entanglement. 

DFO has issued a warning to residents in the area that the penalties for breaking the law with illegal drone activity can be severe (mandatory court appearance and a $100,000 fine).

Link to article: https://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news/troubling-trend-of-drones-buzzing-b-c-marine-mammals-leads-to-dfo-warning/

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I speak to Dr. Johann Bell from Conservation International on today's episode to discuss a Climate Justice example in the Pacific Islands. 

Many small islands states in the Pacific received a majority of their revenue from fishing licenses from the distance water fleets of other countries such as the US, China, Korea, Japan, and others. The revenue pays for education and other programs in the Pacific Island nations. However, there is a problem that is being caused by Climate Change.

The change in water temperature is shifting the tuna populations outside of the small island jurisdiction where the other countries could fish for free rather than paying for the licenses. The small island countries would miss out on crucial revenue and the fisheries would not be regulated in the high seas. 

Dr. Johann Bell discusses the solutions for this problem with me during this episode. 

Links from the episode:
1) Article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-021-00745-z
2) Press Release: https://www.conservation.org/press-releases/2021/07/29/study-warming-waters-threaten-tuna-dependent-economies-in-the-pacific

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COVID caused a lot of disruption in the form of shutdowns, but something that was always available in North America was grocery stores. However, there were some small island states such as Cape Eleuthera that did not know if their food was coming via shipping boats. Luckily it was only temporary. 

During that time, people looked to the sea to provide food without regard for catch limits and quotas. People were searching for food and needed to eat, so catch sizes were not on their minds. 

Dr. Nick Higgs noticed this behaviour and decided to study how many conchs were affected by this temporary food shortage. 

Nick is on the podcast today to discuss his new paper and the results of the study. We also discuss what this could mean for conservation. 

Connect with Dr. Nick Higgs:
1) Website: http://www.ceibahamas.org/

Canada is about to have a federal election in September 20th. The election was called during a time when we are entering the 4th wave of a pandemic; major forest fires are happening on the West Coast (and around the world); and, parts of Canada are flooding (also happening around the world). Some Canadians are not happy that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for an election, but I am happy. 

It gives Canadians a chance to evaluate their current government representation on their Climate Action policies and demand that new candidates make a bigger commitment to Climate change policies. 

The election is a chance where Canadian citizens can ask for change. We hold the power and Climate Change should be at the top of the list. 

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Dr. Naomi Rose joins me on the podcast with an interesting story that resulted in the death of a recently transferred beluga whale at Mystic Aquarium. The beluga whale named Havoc was transferred from the troublesome Marineland located in Canada. 

Naomi describes how the process was flawed from the beginning including the fact that Havoc was sick before the transfer and Mystic Aquarium is known for research that showed cetaceans that are sick don't do well with being transferred. 

This story highlights the problems with processes even though they are in countries that have animal welfare laws that are perceived as effective; however, you will find out that the processes need crucial improvements. 

Link to article: https://www.treehugger.com/mystic-whale-beluga-whale-death-controversy-5197322

Connect with Dr. Naomi Rose:
1) AWI Website: https://awionline.org/
2) Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/frdolphinPOV
3) Twitter: https://twitter.com/frdolphinPOV

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Trying to buy environmentally beneficial products is not as easy as you would think it is. Companies will always try to save money that may compromise the overall environmental benefit of the product. For example, selling vegan food in a plastic container. 

Trying to navigate eco-friendly products can also become difficult because there is misleading information published by "experts" that can confuse or make people think twice about buying a product that does not impact the environment. Electric vehicles (EVs) fall within the same category. 

Buying an electric vehicle is a bit nerve-racking. It's a different type of car. A car that is not familiar to consumers. Any information is difficult to interpret and/or believe. 

In this episode, I take a listener voicemail from Andres Lester-Coll regarding which is better for the environment: Electric Vehicles or Combustion Vehicles.

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In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Chad Nelson, CEO of the Surfrider Foundation, to catch up from our last conversation on the changes and growth that the Surfrider Foundation has undergone over the past five years. 

Chad and I discuss how Surfrider has not only doubled in staff but continues to grow an army of volunteers that represent the foundation well across the US and even into Canada. 

We also discuss how Surfrider collaborates with other organizations to help get good environmental policies passed at local, state, and federal levels. 

Connect with Surfrider Foundation:
Website: https://www.surfrider.org/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Surfrider
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Surfrider

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You would think that we would know more information about whales because they are so big; however, that is not the case. There are many information gaps in what we know about whales, especially whales that leave in extreme climates like the Arctic. 

Beluga and narwhal whales are especially tricky because they live so far up north and often under the ice. Knowing where they go and why is really important as the Arctic is rapidly changing. 

We have been able to track the smaller mammals using aerial surveys and drones however, those technologies are expensive and, in the case of the aerial survey, could be dangerous. 

Bertrand Charry, the co-founder of Whale Seeker, is using satellite imagery to help track these elusive whales and he is my guest on today's podcast to discuss why it's important to track marine mammals from space. He also talks about his career and why he chose to seek the entrepreneurial route to conduct marine science in Canada. 

Connect with Bertrand and Whale Seeker:
Whale Seeker Website: https://www.whaleseeker.com/
Whale Seeker's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whale_seeker/

Connect with Bertrand:
Bertrand's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bertrand-charry-8939b860/

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I am a Science Communicator. I use this podcast to communicate marine science to you and other listeners who would like to know more about how to protect the Ocean. My goal is to present accurate and real information so that you and others could learn about Oceans that may not be readily available online. 

II know many colleagues who communicate science by conducting guest lectures/teachings in K-12 schools. They do it on a volunteer basis in hopes to inspire future scientists of the world. However, it is difficult when other communication platforms such as TV stations say they have a mission to enlighten their audience but create fake documentaries that scare and confuse many people. 

I describe a situation written to me by a listener who sent me an email (you can contact me here with your questions/comments) on today's email.  The listener described a situation that he faced where he attempted to convince a group of students that the megalodon and mermaids were not real despite recent TV programs stating otherwise through fake documentaries.

The listener is a professor at Brigham Young University: 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OceanEcologist

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Ghost nets are discarded nets from fishing vessels that float around in the ocean unmonitored. The nets continue to snag fish, marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds that causes needless deaths every year. 

There are organizations that search for Ghost Nets to retrieve and dispose of them; however, disposing of the plastic nets is not as simple as we think. The nets are often discarded in landfills, but they have the potential to become part of the circular economy. 

Nina Latinga, the co-founder for Nets For Net Zero, is working to connect companies and organizations that would like to use the nets in their circular economy. She joins me on the podcast to discuss how she came across this venture from a background in the circular fashion industry. 

Connect with Nets For Net Zero:
Website: https://www.netsfornetzero.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/netsfornetzero/

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I had a great listener question that I decided to cover on the podcast because I thought it was an important topic. 

@harveyperello asked: Why do we ignore ocean solutions when fighting climate change?

It's a terrific question! The answer comes down to how the ocean is covered in media. You never hear about great ocean projects such as the ones that plant mangroves to combat climate change (mangroves absorb 50 times more carbon than trees on land), but we do hear about 1 billion trees being planted as a new government program. 

There are great programs out there, we just don't hear about them. I have some thoughts on why that I share in during this episode.

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