Ep 018: Fishing charter captains don't care about conservation, right? Wrong.

Coral Aiello started working on her dad's charter boat as a 14-year-old mate. Sixteen years later, she's the captain and her dad works the deck. 

In this episode, Coral shares why she believes fishers care about the ocean more than most, how she brings fish tagging aboard her charters, and what her seat on the Rhode Island Marine Fisheries Council has taught her. Plus: warming waters, the "Professional Hooker" story, and going from law-school plans to captain's license.

We talk about being a woman in a male-dominated industry, the reality behind the "dream job," and how she folds conservation into every charter. This one is honest, funny, and full of heart. 🎣

Connect with Coral

• Book a charter fishing trip with Coral!
• Follow Coral on Instagram @professional.hooker
• Follow Coral on Facebook: Professional Hooker Fishing

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 017: Melissa Hobson is one of the most published ocean writers around, with bylines in National Geographic, BBC Wildlife, Scientific American, The New York Times, and The Guardian. After she was peer-pressured into learning to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef, she slowly transitioned her career from PR to writing about the oceans. 

There are so many options for building a marine career that isn't "scientist," and Melissa shows us just how incredible a career in ocean writing can be. 

We talk about the portfolio-less cold email that landed her the cover of a dive magazine, the one question every good pitch has to answer (it works for job applications too), and how ocean stories break days before the rest of the world hears about them.

 She also talks about her "conservation Trojan horse" trick for slipping the important stuff into a fun animal story, where she really lands on AI as someone who writes for a living, and the citizen science projects that let you help the ocean from your laptop, even if you're hundreds of miles inland.

If you've ever wanted to work in the ocean space but not as a scientist, this one's for you.

Connect with Melissa!

• Visit Melissa's website 
• Melissa Hobson on LinkedIn — where she shares most of her published stories

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 016: Dr. Liberty Boyd went to college to become a teacher, but walked out a sea turtle scientist. In this episode, we get into the decade-long question that pulled her in: what are sea turtles actually doing for 99% of their lives when they're not up on the beach nesting?

For her Ph.D. research, Liberty tracked turtles across the Bahamas, Bermuda, and Australia using cameras, underwater microphones, and Apple-Watch-style motion tags. She breaks down, in plain language, how each one works and what they revealed. We talk about turtles that steer around boats, why the jellyfish-eaters roam so much farther than seagrass munchers, the harmful algal bloom research she's worked on most recently, and the postdoc distinction she wishes someone had explained to her sooner.

She also shares a piece of career news you're hearing here first, and the decade-long relationship behind it.

Whether you're chasing a marine science career or you just love turtles, this one's for you. 🐢

Connect with Dr. Liberty

Follow Libertyology on Instagram

Follow Libertyology on TikTok

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 015: Did you know part of Narragansett Bay was closed to shellfishing since before World War II, and that it only reopened a couple of years ago?

I didn't fully understand what that comeback meant until I sat down with Chris Dodge, the Narragansett Baykeeper at Save The Bay. Chris holds one of only about 300 Waterkeeper positions on the planet, which basically makes him the eyes, ears, and voice of the Bay. I wanted to know what that job actually looks like day to day. Somewhere between raw sewage, a secret tunnel under Providence, and what he calls a "biomagnified bomb of bacteria," I ended up way more hopeful about the future of our Rhode Island's bay than when we started.

In this episode, we get into:

• What a Baykeeper actually does all day (spoiler: no two days look alike)
• Why, in Rhode Island, you often have no way of knowing when sewage hits the water you swim in
• The 3-mile tunnel under Providence that brought shellfishing back after 80 years
• How more than half the Bay's watershed sits in another state
• Chris's advice for breaking into marine conservation when the big orgs feel out of reach

Whether you're chasing a career on the water or just love Narragansett Bay, this one will leave you a little more optimistic about what's possible. 🌊

Connect with Chris 

@narrabaykeeper on Instagram — Chris's weekly beach-closure and bacteria updates

Save The Bay — volunteer, donate, or explore the grounds on the Providence–Cranston border

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 014: What happens when you see something that changes the entire course of your career... in the first six minutes of a Netflix show?

In this episode, I sit down with Imani Black, founder and CEO of Minorities in Aquaculture (MIA). Imani spent about five years as a commercial oyster farmer on the Eastern Shore of Maryland before Googling "how to start a nonprofit" in 2020 and building what's now a global network of around 600 members. She's an oyster enthusiast, a self-described dreamer and doer, and one of the most honest voices I've had on the show. She's keeping it real about what it takes.

Here's what we get into:

• The Netflix moment that rerouted Imani's entire career
• How a cold email (with barely any punctuation!) changed everything
• Why she says aquaculture is conservation, not separate from it
• The article that "caused quite a stir" and the culture shift she's pushing for
• Why representation is a first step, not the finish line
• What "killing every version of yourself" has to do with building something new

Whether you're oyster-curious or dreaming up your own path into marine conservation, this one will leave you inspired. 🦪

Check out Minorities in Aquaculture (MIA) — become a member (free for women, women of color, and gender minorities in aquaculture) or a champion 

Imani's article Aquaculture North America: "We Don't Need More Women's Panels. We Need a Culture Shift."

Follow Imani on Instagram

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 013: Can film move the needle for marine conservation? The answer is an unequivocal YES.

Underwater cinematographer Erick Higuera is not only a genius with a camera, but he's also a marine biologist and passionate advocate for his home, the Mexican Pacific. He's been diving these waters since 1997, meaning he's had a front row seat to some of the worst environmental decline in the region, but also some incredible successes. We chat about some of these amazing examples of ocean recovery and protection, including the marine protected area in Cabo Pulmo and Revillagigedo National Park, North America's largest fully protected marine reserve.

Erick also shares his not-so-linear path into the world of marine biology and cinematography via the dive industry. He reveals some heart-stopping underwater encounters with humpback whales and orcas, and shares how he balances his vitally important work with his family life.

And of course, we talk about the latest project Erick worked on: Hammerhead Sharks Up Close with Bertie Gregory. It's streaming now on Disney+. 

EPISODE SHOW NOTES (click for all the links!)

Connect with Erick

• Erick's website: erickhiguera.com
• Follow Erick on Instagram: @erick.higuera
• Check out Erick's Vimeo
• Dive into Erick's scientific research on ResearchGate

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 012: Sustainable seafood sounds simple... until you're standing at the counter, staring at five kinds of white fish with zero idea what to buy. 

In this episode, I'm breaking down five low-effort, high-impact tips for making better seafood choices, no marine science degree required! 

In this episode, we chat about why eating local matters, what eating low on the food chain actually means, which eco-labels are worth trusting (and which to take with a grain of salt), why ocean plants deserve a spot on your plate, and one easy swap you can make as soon as this week. 

These changes are small, but they compound. You don't have to overhaul your whole diet to make a difference. By the end, you'll have at least one concrete habit to bring to the seafood counter next time you shop.

EPISODE SHOW NOTES (click for all the links!)

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 011: What would you say if someone told you there was a thriving coral reef in a bay full of industrial pollution, sediment runoff, and unusually warm water — and that it had been there for many years? You'd probably say that's impossible. Juli Berwald said the same thing, and then she got on a plane to Honduras to see it for herself.

Juli is an ocean scientist, award-winning author of Spineless and Life on the Rocks, and founder of the nonprofit Tela Coral. In this episode, we get into the mystery behind Tela Bay's improbable elkhorn coral population, the "Flonduran" coral hybrids that are making waves in Florida reef restoration, what it actually takes to build a biobank from scratch in a foreign country, and how a violinist helped raise $86,000 for coral conservation through the power of live music.

We also talk about science writing — how Juli went from textbooks to National Geographic, why she writes memoir into her science books, and what she'd tell anyone who wants to do what she does.

This one genuinely made me want to book a flight to Honduras. I think you'll feel the same way.

EPISODE SHOW NOTES (click for all the links!)

Juli's website: JuliBerwald.com

Follow Juli: @JuliBerwald

Juli's nonprofit, Tela Coral: TelaCoral.org

Follow Tela Coral: @TelaCoral

Preorder Juli's newest book!! The Shell Seeker: Encounters with 30 Seashells comes out July 7, 2026

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 010: Earlier this year, I went to volunteer with a marine conservation organization in the Bali area of Indonesia... and within three days of arriving, I had quit. This episode is the story of what happened, and more importantly, what I learned from it, so you don't have to make the same mistakes I did.

This episode is really about something bigger than any one organization. It's about how to vet a volunteering program before you commit your time and money, what red flags to actually take seriously, how to listen to your gut once you're there, and how to walk away when you need to. The marine conservation field needs more volunteers, but it needs you to be safe, supported, and treated with respect. Let's talk about how to make that more likely.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How to vet a marine conservation organization beyond their website and curated reviews
• Why a real conversation (Zoom ideally, phone at minimum) is non-negotiable before you commit money
• Which pre-arrival red flags really matter, and why slow communication is information, not just an annoyance
• Why a nonprofit is still a business, and what good operational standards look like
• How to tell what your experience will be by watching how leaders treat the people already there
• When and how to quit, even after you've paid and traveled
• How to hold onto your own professional standards when you're being pressured to do things differently
• Why a shared mission doesn't automatically mean shared values, and how to spot the difference

Important note: I'm not naming the organization in this episode. I believe everyone trying to do marine conservation work has good intentions, even when execution falls short, and this isn't a podcast about tearing other people down. But if you're considering volunteering with a marine conservation program in the Bali area and you're worried it might be the one I'm describing, please reach out to me privately. DM me on Instagram or send an email, and I'll happily talk it through with you one-on-one.

EPISODE SHOW NOTES (click for all the links!)

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!

Ep 009: Learning to dive was THE thing that jump-started my marine conservation career. But it taught me a lot more than just how to be a mermaid. I gained valuable skills and abilities that have boosted my resume, gotten me jobs, and kept me going in challenging times in my career.

I'm here to convince you to get in the water! Learning to dive might be one of the single most transformative things you can do if you want to work in marine science and conservation, not because it's required (although for many roles, it actually is), but because of what happens to you when you finally get under the surface. I'm talking about why "becoming a fish" rewires the way you observe the natural world, how you learn tons without trying every time you get in the water, the field skills that quietly stack up on your resume, and why being underwater might be the single best antidote to burnout in this field. 

In this episode, I talk about:

• why being in the water is the single fastest way to understand the ocean
• how passive education happens every time you get underwater
• the reality that for a lot of marine science jobs, diving isn't optional, it's required (and once cost me a position I really wanted)
• the transferable skills that quietly turn you into a stronger field scientist
• why nothing keeps you going in this field like being back in the water
• how to actually get started (and why you don't need to live somewhere tropical)

EPISODE SHOW NOTES (click for all the links!)

Looking to break into the world of marine conservation, but don’t know where to start? I’ve got you! Download my free resource, the Aspiring Marine Conservationist’s toolkit at caseysnook.com/toolkit and start making waves in your career today 🌊

Podcast website

Casey's Instagram - @caseysnook_

Podcast Instagram - @thisismarineconservation

Say hello! Contact Casey here.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, it’d mean the world if you took a moment to subscribe and leave a review and/or rating wherever you’re listening! Your support helps this podcast reach more ocean lovers and aspiring marine conservationists just like you. Thank you!