Category: Featured

People and Ideas You Should Know: 5 Questions with Anupa Asokan

Posted on By Angelo Villagomez
Conservation, Education, Featured, Policy, Reviews and Interviews, Science

Anupa Asokan, founder and executive director of Fish On—a new fishing interest organization working to advance ocean conservation policy—recently published a peer-reviewed perspective in Frontiers, “Marine Protected Areas as a Tool for Environmental Justice.” Anupa is a lifelong fisherwoman and has become a passionate advocate for ocean conservation and justice.  I’ve known her for several … Read More “People and Ideas You Should Know: 5 Questions with Anupa Asokan” »

How Donald Trump’s Day 1 Executive Actions Impact the Ocean

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Policy

It is day two of the Trump Administration. Yesterday saw a flurry of Executive Actions targeting immigration, climate change, energy, and social and justice issues. Trump also issued an executive order to overrule Trump’s Supreme Court’s upholding of Trump’s TikTok ban. In a sea of disinformation fueled by both propaganda, the reaction economy of social … Read More “How Donald Trump’s Day 1 Executive Actions Impact the Ocean” »

Deep-sea Mining: What went down in 2024?

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Policy

The march towards deep-sea mining is a slow and stately trudge through a complex international negotiation. The real progress isn’t made in flashy headlines or overhyped announcements, but in painstaking deliberations and incremental progress in the mining code and the environmental and financial regimes. In as much as 2024 was a fairly standard year in … Read More “Deep-sea Mining: What went down in 2024?” »

Open-source science hardware for an Open Ocean: Reflecting on the Year of the OpenCTD

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Conservation, Education, Featured

At the beginning of 2024, I made a commitment to make it the year of the OpenCTD. A CTD is an oceanographic instrument that measures salinity, temperature, and depth. It is an essential tool in the conduct and marine scientific research. Access to CTDs often present a barrier to communities and knowledge seekers interested in … Read More “Open-source science hardware for an Open Ocean: Reflecting on the Year of the OpenCTD” »

The wrongest belief about the deep sea is wronger than you know

Posted on By David Shiffman
Blogging, Conservation, Exploration, Featured, Science

More people care about marine biodiversity and saving the ocean than ever before. But progress towards evidence-based conservation is hindered by widespread public misunderstanding of the key issues in play.   You’ve heard versions of this rant from me for 15 years, but this is not a post about sustainable fisheries, or shark conservation. This … Read More “The wrongest belief about the deep sea is wronger than you know” »

How the summer of sharks reshaped our understanding of US presidential elections.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Policy

The year was 1916, the First World War raged, Woodrow Wilson was in a desperate three-way race for reelection, and sharks were about to experience a shift in public perception that would endure into the next millennium. Prior to 1916, sharks weren’t regarded as particularly dangerous in the United States. A 1915 letter in the … Read More “How the summer of sharks reshaped our understanding of US presidential elections.” »

‘Twas brillig… building a Dungeons & Dragons campaign for adventurers in and out of the classroom.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Education, Featured

Earlier this month, I released The Last Hunt for the Jabberwock, a Dungeons & Dragons adventure in ecologic succession. This campaign is an expression of my two favorite things: being giant nerd going on strange journeys with an odd assortment of friends and helping students of all ages learn about their world through experiential education. … Read More “‘Twas brillig… building a Dungeons & Dragons campaign for adventurers in and out of the classroom.” »

Hunt the Jabberwock, Defend the Warren, Save the Forest: a D&D 5e Adventure for Environmental Educators

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Education, Featured

Welcome to the Warren. Within this tiny Domain of Delight, Rabbitfolk engage in an endless battle against the Jabberwock, a manxome foe that refuses to stay dead. With the aid of their Archfey and allies from near and far, they have forged an uneasy peace. Every 30 years the Emerald Moon rises, the Jabberwock returns, … Read More “Hunt the Jabberwock, Defend the Warren, Save the Forest: a D&D 5e Adventure for Environmental Educators” »

This Rum Protects the Ocean: the world’s first conservation distillery is open for business.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Conservation, Featured

Five years ago, a small team of ocean scientists, conservationists, sea turtle patrollers, and distillers came up with a radical idea to create a sustainable, long-term funding model for Dominica’s Sea Turtle Conservation Organization and Ocean’s Forward. From dozens of meetings, market analyses, and viability assessments, the Rosalie Bay Distillery was born. The distillery would … Read More “This Rum Protects the Ocean: the world’s first conservation distillery is open for business.” »

Giant tube worms dwell in the deep places beneath the ocean floor.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Science

Giant deep-sea tube worms. When the RV Knorr arrived above Galapagos Rift in 1977, a team of geologists, geochemists, and geophysicist, including Robert Ballard who would go on to locate the wreck of the Titanic among other ocean-shaping discoveries) was prepared to witness something never before seen: a geyser of superheated, chemical rich water erupting … Read More “Giant tube worms dwell in the deep places beneath the ocean floor.” »