Nathan Johnson and I get together again to chat about this week's top stories. High on the list was the discovery of plastic pollution reaching the Arctic, Coffee Cups not really going where we often expect them, Corals undergoing a global bleaching event and Sea Shepherd helping the Mexican Government save the Vaquita. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session40

Orcas in the wild have been busy this year as researchers have discovered 6 new baby orcas this year alone. This orca baby boom is a great sign for the endangered pod that lives along the West Coast of North America. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session39

Sea Shepherd has partnered with the Mexican Government to patrol the Marine Sanctuary in the Sea of Cortez where the almost Extinct Vaquita lives. Sea Shepherd will ensure gill nets are not interfering with Vaquita daily life to ensure their survival. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session38

Great White Sharks are not ssen too often in the Pacific Ocean near San Francisco, that is until now. This year, the US Coast Guard found a school of 20 sharks 100 yds offshore of some popular beaches. Their presnece this far North is probably due to warmer than normal sea temperatures, which are changing the fish distribution extents in the Pacific. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session37

The new Canadian Federal government will be great for Canadian Ocean Science and Conservation as the Liberal majority in power has promised to restore Canada's Oceans, Climate, and Environmental protection policies to the Internationally lead policies they once were - before the Conservation government scrapped them all for oil and gas favoured policies. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session36

Today Nathan and I give our thoughts on 4 articles: 1) Antarctic Overfishing; 2) Sunscreen harming corals; 3) Video: Face to Face with a Great White in South Africa; and, 4) Destroyed seagrass beds releasing carbon into the atmosphere. Shop for the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/shop 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session35

In today's episode, I discuss an article by the Tiffany & Co. Foundation describing how it has donated $10 million to various Ocean Conservation projects. The author of the article, Anisa Costa, encourages other businesses to take the initiative and conserve the Ocean in their own way. Just like we are doing with Speak Up For Blue! 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session34

Dr. Andrew David Thaler is on the show to talk about his career in deep sea research using ROVs (remotely operated vehicles to further marine conservation. Andrew has also taken a different career path than most people in the Marine Conservation field. We discuss this and his entrepreneurial endeavours into creating accessibility to basic science instrumentation. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session33

We often think that marine mammals, sharks, and sea turtles are the most important to the ocean because they are big. However, it is the tiniest animals called plankton that are most important. I tell you why and how in today's podcast. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session32

El Nino can change typical weather patterns into anomalies that can damage coral reefs and change species distributions. It can also starve fish. Find out how. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session31

Dr. Nathan Robinson and I talk about the Ocean News of this past week and dive into how Ocean Conservation fits in to Climate Change, More Climate Change, Illegal Fishing and Overfishing, and Shark Conservation. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session30

It's National Marine Week in South Africa and we found a great article on 6 ways to better protect the Ocean. So Andrew goes over each way and why we should do them. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session29

The Costa Rican government has stated they will not support CITES protection of commercially important sharks. The President of the country has given in the violent protests for the fisheries community who want to catch and sell sharks for food such as shark fin soup. 10 Ocean Tips to Conserve the Ocean: http://www.speakupforblue.com/wordpress/sufb_optinpdf Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session28

Sea otters are a fun species to observe in their natural habitat. Today, I thought I would start the week with 5 fun facts on Sea Otters. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session27

Marine Protected Areas are an important conservation tool to protect habitat. 2 Marine Sanctuaries in the US and 2 MPAs in Chile were announced this week. Nathan Johnson and I discuss why they are important and how they should be used. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session26

Blue whales are massive and extraordinary marine mammals. They are the largest marine mammals on the planet and with that title comes the burden of exerting energy to feed vs keeping your energy to move. Researchers have recently found that Blue Whales only exert energy to feed when krill (their food source) patches are dense and choose not to feed when krill are found in small numbers. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session25

Dr. Nathan Robinson recounts the time he pulled an object out of the nostril of a sea turtle in the field. Find out what that object was and how it affected the research crew. Nathan also talks to me about how we can better protect sea turtles.

A recent study by the Ocean Conservancy found that 80% of plastics were coming from land based sources and 45% of plastics where flowing from 5 countries. Now we now where there plastic pollution comes from, we can now manage it beeter. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session23

Dr. Sylvia Earle was a keynote speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative Meeting and issued a stark warning that everyone needs to be informed on the issues the Ocean faces and the solutions to remedy those issues. I chat about key points in Dr. Earle's speech and focus on telling you how to find out more about the oceans. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session22

Oil giant Shell has decided to pull out of the Arctic due to a number of factors. Nathan and I breakdown those factors and explore some unasnwered questions. Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session21

The CSIRO, the Australian federal government department, in charge of protecting the countries natural resources is chartering it's Oceanographic Research vessels to BP and Chevron to pay for the very same research that goes to creating policy regulating the Oil and Gas industry. Do you see the problem here? Show Notes: http://www.speakupforblue.com/session20