Seas The Day

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.

On this episode Rand Alotaibi, Lauren Mahoney, and Madena Mustafa talk about the negative impact that noise from ships and seismic surveys has on whales, with a special focus on the blue whale, the largest animal to ever live. Rand, Lauren, and Madena consult marine mammal experts to learn why sound in the ocean is such a big deal, and to identify what we can do to help.

On this episode Marissa Garcia, Uma Govindswamy, and Connor Johnston discuss the past, present, and future relationship between human beings and the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales who inhabit the coastal waters of the Pacific Northwest.

This week’s episode focuses on the Taiwanese white dolphin. It was produced by Duke undergraduate students Pavel Pivarshev and Tony Garcia in the summer of 2020. Pavel and Tony explore the history of humpback white dolphins in Taiwan and assess the threat these small marine mammals are facing, particularly through fisheries interactions. They ask experts from the Wild at Heart, Legal Defense Association in Taiwan and Florida International University to weigh in on the magnitude and complexity of these issues and discuss ways we can all act to protect endangered species such as these charismatic dolphins.

Why did Japan leave the IWC and why do we care? Contention between whaling nations and non-whaling nations allied with conservation groups helps to explain Japan’s departure from the International Whaling Commission (IWC). In this episode, Andrea Kolarova, Emma Shannabrook, and Colyer Woolston explore the geopolitical history leading up to this moment, discuss competing arguments surrounding commercial whaling, and pose the question: “now what?” The episode features an interview with Dr. Andrew Read of the Duke University Marine Lab, an expert in cetacean conservation with long-term involvement in the IWC.

With images of garbage clogging up the Pacific and straw bans popping up from city to city, it’s fair to say that marine plastic pollution has caught the public’s eye. But how do we solve the plastic problem– do we stop it at the source, place blame on consumers, target big corporations, or figure out the best technology to remove it once it enters the water? In this episode, Ali Boden and Cass Nieman explore the plastic burden as it is passed along the supply chain. Part of our Conservation and Development Series.

With the world population projected to reach 10 billion in the next 30 years, it is reasonable to wonder: What will the future landscapes of food production look like? Or should we say... Seascapes. In this episode of Conservation and Development, Kendall Jefferys and Lauren A. Mariolis discuss the potential and pitfalls of aquaculture. They also dive into the environmental, cultural, political, and economic implications of expanding aquaculture in the United States and what role aquaculture might play in the future of food production.

On this episode, the host, Rafaella Lobo, talks to four other students to understand how the covid-19 global pandemic has affected their lives and research, and how they have learned to cope with these new challenges.