Deep-sea mining is a topic of hot debate as groups argue over whether it will be good or bad for the countries where deep sea resources are found. On this episode, Masha Edmondson and Brandon Gertz explore the risks, rewards, and resistance deep-sea mining has sparked in three pacific island nations: Papua New Guinea, the Cook Islands, and Fiji. Along the way, deep sea experts Dr. Cindy van Dover and Ph.D. student Elisabetta Menini from Duke University help explain the environmental and human impacts of deep-sea mining and the actions that can be taken to avoid them.

In this podcast, Maddie Paris and Maya Lytje discuss how COVID-19 has influenced marine plastic pollution. They explore the marine conservation, human health, and international equity implications of plastic pollution through the lens of the ongoing pandemic. In exploring these issues, the pair interviews Dr. Dan Rittschof, a professor at the Duke Marine Lab, and John Hocevar, the Greenpeace USA Oceans Campaign Director, to get their perspectives.

In this episode, Rafaella Lobo and Jessica Zhao explore the role of non-government organizations (NGOs) in promoting conservation in developing countries. They focus in particular on the role of and relations among Big International NGOs (BINGOs) and small, local NGOs, the strengths and weaknesses of each.

On this episode, Lillian Dukes, Haoyang Tang, and Franny Oppenheimer address the current status of the North Atlantic right whale and the threats they face like entanglements, ship strikes, and climate change. The episode also explores management measures that have been taken to protect them and considers the future of this critically endangered whale.

On this episode Bree Collins and Erin Sullivan speak with Dr. Andy Read and Dr. Randy Wells about their past, present, and future efforts to save the critically endangered vaquita.

On this episode, the host, Rafaella Lobo, talks to five current and former students, as well as a faculty member, about their experiences leaving their home countries to pursue higher education in the US.

For more information, visit https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/seastheday/?p=792

In this episode, Maggie, Lily, and Savannah explore the intersections between ecotourism and Indigenous tourism. Using the lens of agency, they use specific cases to highlight how the agency of Indigenous peoples within tourism ventures varies, and with what consequences.

Ecotourism has been touted as a way to limit the destruction of natural habitats caused by mass tourism, while supplementing income of local communities in developing nations. While good in theory, how successful has ecotourism been at empowering the people who live in the beautiful places ecotourists want to visit? In this podcast, Cindy Pan, Melissa Baldino, and Virginia Pan investigate the impacts of ecotourism initiatives on local communities, with the help of Duke University Marine Lab assistant professor Dr. David Gill.

Tourism in the Bahamas In this episode, Emily Melvin and Katrina Rosing delve into the complexities of tourism in the Bahamas. The two discuss how tourism affects Bahamian identity and promotes colonial legacies even today. In exploring these issues, they interview Tarran Simms of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism’s sustainability department, who discusses his views of Bahamian identity, the interplay of that identity with tourism, and the emergence of new forms of tourism in the Bahamas.

In the last episode of 2020, the Seas the Day team reflects on the work done to date, and plans for 2021. The first episode of 2021 will be available on January 20th.