Season 1

Microplastics were found in the human bloodstream, so can we now actually do something about plastic pollution?

March 28, 2022

We often wait too late until we change the bad things we do in society. Climate change is wreaking havoc on our planet and we are still debating on whether it's real.  Now, a study showed that microplastics are in the human …

The one thing you need to do to get your dream job in marine science and conservation

March 25, 2022

You grow up wanting to be marine biologists and pursue the tough road through their undergraduate and graduate careers, but after you graduate, you can’t find a job, therefore you get extremely frustrated and sad, or maybe w…

Be your authentic self when communicating marine science

March 23, 2022

Many scientists love communicating their science to the public and they know that science communication is the key to improving conservation, but when they do SciComm they tend to not be their authentic selves causing their …

Corals can be heat trained for survival

March 21, 2022

Mass bleaching is happening more often for longer periods of time every year causing more damage than in previous years and it looks as though coral reefs will change in composition unless something is done to help them adap…

My journey to buying an electric vehicle (EV) to reduce my carbon footprint

March 18, 2022

Climate change is rearing its ugly head in many forms, including wildfires, mass coral bleaching, major glaciers and ice sheets melting, and an increase in major storms. the damage of climate change consequences are costing …

What Indigenous-led conservation means

March 16, 2022

Indigenous conservation success may not be the same for Western scientists and conservationists, yet we often approach conservation in Indigenous communities with our own preconceived notions of conservation success.  Angelo…

Studying the animals that hitch rides on the back of sea turtles

March 14, 2022

Dr. Nathan Robinson was part of a sea turtle research team when the team discovered that one of the sea turtles had a straw stuck up its nose. The entire ordeal was recorded and the video went viral on YouTube and contribute…

Words matter in Science Communication

March 11, 2022

Science communication is an important part of marine conservation. I dedicated my career to SciComm because I feel that telling the public of what is happening to the Ocean is crucial to changing behaviours to live for a bet…

How to interpret marine science studies

March 9, 2022

Marine science papers can be hard to interpret if you are not a scientist so I decided to take you through how to interpret them and where there could be some room for error. You may or may not have read a marine science jou…

An example of fisheries collaboration between Indigenous fishers, academia, and commercial fishers

March 7, 2022

The relationship between Indigenous people and the government of Canada is terrible. the relationship with Indigenous people and commercial fishers is also terrible, especially over the past couple of years when the Mi'kmaq …

A one week break

March 1, 2022

I know you were expecting an episode on Marine Science and Conservation today; however, I am quite distracted by the news of the invasion of Ukraine this past week. I don't feel very inspired to podcast after watching the vi…

Why we need gender equality in the seafood industry

Feb. 25, 2022

Julie Kuchepatov is seeking to fight gender inequality within the seafood industry. She launched the Conch podcast where she interviews women at various levels of the seafood supply chain to tell their stories and show how w…

How to choose a citizen science program

Feb. 23, 2022

In the last episode, I talked about a citizen science project in the Southern Atlantic Ocean targeted at recreational fishers. I'm sure some of you wanted to join that program because let's face it, it was a fun program that…

Argentina sport fishers help protect sharks through citizen science

Feb. 21, 2022

Sharks in the southern Atlantic ocean are being protected through a citizen science program with sport fishers who regularly target sharks. Why is this a big deal you ask? Previous to this program, sport fishers were killing…

Help stop a cruise line pier in Cozumel, Mexico

Feb. 18, 2022

A megaproject is proposed to move forward to build an 800 metre long pier for the island of Cozumel to accommodate four more cruise lines per day (in addition to the current 3 cruise lines per day). The pier will also be des…

Did the Ocean Clean Up Project publish a staged video of it cleaning up plastic from the ocean?

Feb. 16, 2022

The Ocean Clean Up Project recently released a video showing a trawl net releasing plastic pollution that it supposedly hauled from the ocean and released on the deck of a shipping vessel. However, there seemed to be some th…

How do YOU balance the progressive versus the excessive lifestyle

Feb. 15, 2022

I saw a video today about how the generation known as Generation Z is battling two different lifestyles. There is the progressive lifestyle that is led by the likes of people like Greta Thunberg and there is the excessive li…

Aquaculture in 2022 - What you need to know

Feb. 11, 2022

Are you wondering whether you should eat aquacultured seafood products? People seem to be down on aquaculture stating that there are many environmental issues. They aren't wrong as issues such as feed for the animals, risk o…

SUFB 1268: Do you consider sustainability as part of success in life?

Feb. 9, 2022

How do you define success? People often consider success as making a certain amount of money, having a family, and/or accomplishing specific goals in life. However, have you ever considered your sustainability as a measureme…

SUFB 1267: 100,000 dead fish at sea by second largest trawler

Feb. 7, 2022

Last week, we saw what really happens at sea with industrialized fishing. 100,000 dead fish were discarded from a net and floating on the ocean taking up 3,000 square meters (32,300 square feet) in size.  The fish were disca…

SUFB 1266: Fighting to reduce Plastic Oceans in Canada with Natasha Tucker

Feb. 4, 2022

I found out about an organization in Canada that works with students, teachers, and volunteers to clean up plastics along beaches and wetlands and help reduce the amount of single-use plastics in Canada.  You just know I had…

1265: Orcas helped whalers to hunt blue whales

Feb. 2, 2022

In the last episode, I talked about the strategies, that were observed by marine mammal researchers, of orcas demonstrated to hunt blue whales in NSW, Australia.  After publishing the episode, an audience member reached out …

SUFB 1264: Orcas killing blue whales

Jan. 31, 2022

Scientists recently observed three separate hunting events of orcas against blue whales. Two hunting events were in 2019 (16 days apart) and the last event was in 2021. The first event was on a healthy individual.  The scien…

SUFB 1263: Blue carbon through ocean art

Jan. 28, 2022

Blue carbon could possibly be a term that is the least known in conservation by the public. It's an important term that has many positive outcomes for the ocean and our planet.  Rosie Sherwood is an artist who would like mor…

SUFB 1262: Bleached reefs can still support nutritious fish

Jan. 26, 2022

A study based in Seychelles found that there some fish species will remain on a reef after the corals have bleached, which could help maintain fisheries and some form of nutrition for humans.  Coral reefs are at risk from or…

SUFB 1261: A new Gentoo penguin colony discovered by Greenpeace with help from climate change

Jan. 24, 2022

A Greenpeace research vessel discovered a new colony of Gentoo penguins in Antarctica. It is the only colony that has been detected this far south on the icy continent. It's an important discovery because Gentoo penguins pre…

SUFB 1260: Can media headlines affect motivation on climate change?

Jan. 21, 2022

There was a headline on Rollingstone magazine (link below) that mentioned the Doomsday Glacier was on the verge of melting. The headline didn't make me feel good about where we were at on reducing climate change, but it also…

SUFB 1259: How Pharmaceuticals are affecting water quality

Jan. 19, 2022

Did you ever wonder what happens to your pee and poo after you flush the toilet? I bet you never thought you would read those words on this podcast, but the fact of the matter is our water quality is dependent on how well ou…

SUFB 1258: Undersea Volcano erupts near Tonga affecting nearby islands

Jan. 17, 2022

You likely heard of the undersea volcano that erupted in the South Pacific near the island of Tonga as it was all over the news. The eruption reached 20 km in the air and the blast was visible from space. Unfortunately, the …

SUFB 1257: Are your coffee pods recyclable in your area?

Jan. 14, 2022

Coffee pods are popular in most households. You can make any type of coffee quickly without any mess of having to take teaspoon measurements of the coffee beans and pour them into the coffee-maker. All you have to do is pop …

SUFB 1256: Invasive species arriving in Antarctica buy boats

Jan. 12, 2022

Is visiting the Antarctic on your bucket list? If so, you may want to take the right boat to get there.  PhD researcher at the University of Cambridge, Arlie McCarthy, wrote a great piece that we should all be talking about …

SUFB 1255: Individuals VS Corporations - who is more responsible for our wasteful society

Jan. 10, 2022

There was a great conversation happening on TikTok (yes, TikTok) on Dr. Virginia Schutte's account regarding wastefulness and our environment.  The video series started with Virginia stitching another creator on her comments…

SUFB 1254 - We now have evidence that warmer waters with less oxygen will produce smaller fish dominated communities

Jan. 7, 2022

There is a prediction that says the ocean will have warmer water with less oxygen that will be more conducive to smaller mesopelagic fish. A study was recently published in Science and covered on Mongabay news that provides …

SUFB 1253: The plight of the endangered Indus River dolphin

Jan. 5, 2022

Another Indus river dolphin was found dead near the Taunsa Barrage (a damn) in the Indus River (Pakistan) bringing the total to three Indus dolphins in the past month found dead. This past dolphin was found in fishing gear, …

SUFB 1252: More sightings of marine mammals in Cornwall comes with a price of increased strandings

Jan. 3, 2022

The people of Cornwall, UK are enjoying the increased number of marine mammal sightings over the past couple of years; however, unfortunately, they are also seeing an increased number of marine mammal strandings.  New sighti…

SUFB 1251: Why scientists understand the movie Don't Look Up more than you know

Dec. 31, 2021

Watching Netflix's new movie Don't Look Up made me feel seen as no other movie has before. The movie is a satire on how society reacts to the news of environmental disasters and depicts scientists as whistleblowers that are …

SUFB 1250: Hope can help win the war on nature

Dec. 20, 2021

A friend recently recommended a podcast to me where the host interviewed Dr. Jane Goodall. Dr. Goodall is a terrific scientist and is known for her studies on great apes where she lived with apes in the wild for many years. …

SUFB 1249: Are floating solar panels good for Ocean habitats?

Dec. 17, 2021

We need to do many things to reduce Climate Change and there are companies that are working around the clock to help bring renewable energy to the forefront in order to get them online.  You may notice more windmills in the …

SUFB 1247: Dr. David Suzuki tells protesters that people will "blow up pipelines" governments don't do anything about climate change

Dec. 15, 2021

The people are fed up with the broken promises of climate action by governments and will eventually resort to violence if the government doesn't clean up its act with the oil and gas industry. Dr. David Suzuki thinks that bl…

SUFB 1247: Why mining deep-sea hydrothermal vents is a bad idea

Dec. 13, 2021

Deep-sea mining is on the minds of many mining and tech companies as there is a potential to mind the metals that are so badly needed for computer chips that power the very devices you are using to listen to this podcast. Ho…

SUFB 1246: Are NFTs bad for climate change?

Dec. 10, 2021

NFTs are all the rage in the cryptocurrency world these days. Many artists, digital creators, and even marine organizations are making money using NFTs. However, the way NFTs are processed could have implications for increas…

SUFB 1245: WTF!!! The Indonesian government is using coal to help grow coral

Dec. 8, 2021

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…

SUFB 1244: The type of protected area matters to the ocean

Dec. 6, 2021

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 …

SUFB 1243: What is a nurdle and how is it affecting the ocean?

Dec. 3, 2021

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…

SUFB 1242: 3 new genetically distinct tiger shark populations are identified

Dec. 1, 2021

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 …

SUFB 1241: Are polar bears in Norway switching their diets to eat more reindeer?

Nov. 29, 2021

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…

SUFB 1240: Surfrider's State of the Beach report - How is your state managing your beaches?

Nov. 26, 2021

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…

SUFB 1239: The Florida manatees are dying of starvation

Nov. 24, 2021

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…

SUFB 1238: Lobster fishing vs protecting the North Atlantic Right Whale

Nov. 22, 2021

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…

SUFB 1237: Assessing Shark Fisheries in Bangladesh with Alifa Haque

Nov. 19, 2021

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…