Episodes
Dec. 8, 2021
SUFB 1245: WTF!!! The Indonesian government is using coal to help grow coral
The Indonesian government took coal ash off the list of hazardous materials even though there is evidence that there are harmful metals such as mercury and arsenic that can leech into the environment. The coal industry lobby…
Dec. 6, 2021
SUFB 1244: The type of protected area matters to the ocean
There are many designation categories for protected areas in the ocean; however, they are often lumped into one category: Marine Protected Area. Marine Protected Area (MPA) is a term that has a very specific definition that …
Dec. 3, 2021
SUFB 1243: What is a nurdle and how is it affecting the ocean?
In May 2021, a container ship called the X-Press Pearl caught fire and sank off the coast of Sri Lanka spilling large amounts of toxic chemicals in the form of fuel and a high concentration of microplastic pellets, called nu…
Dec. 1, 2021
SUFB 1242: 3 new genetically distinct tiger shark populations are identified
New research published in the Journal of Heredity identified 3 new genetically distinctive populations of tiger sharks: one population is in the Indo-Pacific Ocean basin; one is in the Atlantic Ocean basin, and the third is …
Nov. 29, 2021
SUFB 1241: Are polar bears in Norway switching their diets to eat more reindeer?
Polish researchers observed a young female polar bear chasing a reindeer into the ocean, drowning it, and feeding on it. The observation in addition to another observation of the same young female feeding on a different rei…
Nov. 26, 2021
SUFB 1240: Surfrider's State of the Beach report - How is your state managing your beaches?
Did you ever wonder how well your State is managing your beaches? Your state has a coastline along the ocean or the Great Lakes which can be a dynamic place. Coastlines are always changing, usually slow changes, but they are…
Nov. 24, 2021
SUFB 1239: The Florida manatees are dying of starvation
There have been over 1,000 manatees that have died in 2021. Most of the manatees died of starvation due to the lack of seagrass available for food. This episode explores why the seagrass disappeared over the past decade and…
Nov. 22, 2021
SUFB 1238: Lobster fishing vs protecting the North Atlantic Right Whale
The North Atlantic Right whale's population dipped from 366 to 336 from 2019 to 2020 making it the lowest it has been in 20 years. Whale entanglement is the leading culprit in the North Atlantic Right Whale's mortality off t…
Nov. 19, 2021
SUFB 1237: Assessing Shark Fisheries in Bangladesh with Alifa Haque
This interview with Alifa Haque is a sample of the second episode of season 2 of the Beyond Jaws podcast about the science and conservation actions for wedgefish and guitarfish. Alifa is a doctoral candidate at the Universi…
Nov. 17, 2021
SUFB 1236: Beyond Jaws Podcast Season 2 Out Now!
My co-host for the Beyond Jaws Jaws podcast, Dr. David Ebert, joins me on the podcast today to discuss the new season of our podcast discussing wedgefish and guitarfish science and conservation. Wedgefish and guitarfish are …
Nov. 15, 2021
SUFB 1235: The Mediterranean Sea is full of plastic despite international policies to reduce it
OceanEye, a non-profit organization dedicated to collecting plastic pollution in the Mediterranean Sea to understand the level of pollution, has contributed data and results to international bodies such as the IUCN and UN fo…
Nov. 12, 2021
SUFB 1234: Listener feedback on COP26 and Climate Action
I was pleasantly surprised when I heard the latest voicemail that came in was from my neighbour Brynn, who lives two doors down the street from me. She responded to my request for people to send a voicemail to discuss their …
Nov. 10, 2021
SUFB 1233: COP26 - Canadian Pledges and Indigenous and Scientist Reactions
COP26 is all about the big announcements and Canada definitely made a big one. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada will cap emissions on the oil and gas industry, but the cap won't affect the production of oi…
Nov. 8, 2021
SUFB 1232: COP26 Major Announcements within the first week
Good ol' COP26, the Climate Change meeting, is happening again and there were some major announcements made at the meeting by countries such as the US, India, and Canada. I will cover the Canadian announcement in the next ep…
Nov. 5, 2021
SUFB 1231: Teamseas - Should Ocean Conservancy be on the same campaign as the Ocean Clean Up?
I received some great questions from some audience members about episode 1230 where I interviewed Dr. Virginia Schutte about the Teamseas campaign and why you might not want to support the campaign, but donate directly to an…
Nov. 3, 2021
SUFB 1230: What you need to know about the #Teamseas fundraiser
There are many fundraisers that occur throughout the year for the oceans and they are run by various organizations. Most of them have good intentions to help protect the Oceans. Some raise a lot of money and some not so much…
Nov. 1, 2021
SUFB 1229: 300 Olive Ridley's Sea Turtles wash up dead along a Pacific Coastline
There was an unfortunate situation along the Pacific Coast when at least 300 Olive Ridley's Sea Turtles washed up dead on the shore. Experts say that cause of death was most likely drowning after getting caught in fishing g…
Oct. 29, 2021
SUFB 1228: Are coral restoration organizations doing good for coral reefs?
I answer a listener voicemail on today's episode. Laura asked if an organization's work, named Coral Vita, is worth supporting. She wanted to know if the work they do is helpful to coral reefs. Coral Vita recently won the E…
Oct. 27, 2021
SUFB 1227: How can science communicators better communicate climate change?
I answer a listener question from a voicemail I received about how people who communicate science can get their message across to their target audiences about Climate Change. There is a long history of messaging about clima…
Oct. 25, 2021
SUFB 1226: Where do you begin to help protect the Ocean?
I received a question from Josie Greenston who asked me (I am paraphrasing): Where do I begin with helping with the Ocean? There are so many things that are harming the ocean (climate change, over-fishing, plastic pollution,…
Oct. 22, 2021
SUFB 1225: Home Sweet Home with the Zero Waste Family
I see many people profess to go Zero Waste and I think it's great; however, I have trouble relating to them because they are oftentimes at different life stages than I am. They are single or a two-person household, which mak…
Oct. 20, 2021
SUFB 1224: Measuring changes 5 Years after the Blob
The Blob, a massive heatwave in the Pacific Ocean raised the average sea surface temperature by 2-4C and changed the distribution of some species. The Blob raised the temperature in cooler waters as well as the direction of…
Oct. 18, 2021
SUFB 1223: What would I do if I had to start to Sci Comm today?
Last episode (Episode 1223), I spoke to Virginia Schutte and Bethann Merkel about their approach to Science Communication that they discuss on their new podcast called Meteor. During the interview, I talked about how I just…
Oct. 15, 2021
SUFB 1222: Meteor - the scicomm podcast that we didn't know we needed
I am a huge advocate for science communication (scicomm). It's important for audiences to understand what science is doing for our society and how we are affecting it. However, scicommers like myself do not have a formal com…