Author and marine conservation biologist David Shiffman (Why Sharks Matter) talks about Sharkweek, Sharknados, megalodon myths, Jaws and junk science with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young (author of Sharks Forever & Big Sharks, Small World). “More people are bitten by other people on the New York city subway system every year than are bitten by sharks in the whole world… but whenever any shark gives someone side eye anywhere in the world, it’s headline news everywhere in the world.”

Shownotes:

4:10 “Jaws has had a really transformative impact. For sharks mostly bad.” How Jaws changed everything for sharks and meeting Richard Dreyfuss. “The movie is just so good.”

5:05 “It’s really changed the world. Before Jaws came out most people really didn’t think about sharks at all.”

5:56 “Spielberg has a lot to answer for here.”

6:23 The Jaws Effect. “It refers to how fictional portrayals of a real world issue can affect how people really think about that issue. In reality.”

7:36 Watching The Shark is Broken – the Jaws play – on Broadway!

10:14 On the impact of Sharknado! “I love those goofy, bad shark movies… there are two kinds of shark movies – there are bad shark movies and there’s Jaws.” And how Sharknado funded his PhD work.

13:18 “It’s just frigging weird how much this goofy Saturday night basic cable movie has escaped its cage and entered the cultural zeitgeist.”

13:44 “Here’s a crazy story for you…” How Sharknado may have launched Donald Trump’s political career.

16:04 On being Sharkweek’s number one critic “I’m very critical of the dumpster fire of nonsense and lies that they show every year.”

17:33 “I could rant about how bad Sharkweek is… forever.” And how Sharkweek does nothing to help sharks. “Sharkweek and I are not besties.”

17:48 There are more dudes named Mike on Sharkweek than there are women… even though in real life 60% of shark experts are women.

19:37 Great white sharks are mentioned in 40% of newspaper stories about endangered sharks – even though they’re not one of the most endangered species… All anyone wants to talk or write about… great white sharks.

21:00 Getting people to care about the bigger picture…”One thing that does change people’s minds is “yes, and…””

25:44 Talking 24 and sharks. “All of the species of sharks in the world combined have killed a lot fewer people than Jack Bauer has killed on-screen. Not even counting his off-screen exploits.”

26:34 “More people are bitten by other people on the New York city subway system every year than are bitten by sharks in the whole world… but whenever any shark gives someone side eye anywhere in the world, it’s headline news everywhere in the world.”

27:46 “Seeing a shark swimming close to the beach is not news. That’s where they’re supposed to be.”

28:00 A toy story – myth busting a fake goblin shark.

31:18 The megalodon conspiracy! “They were very cool – but they’ve been extinct for millions of years.”

33:38 The importance of public science engagement.

34:54 A new treaty that may help save sharks – and other species.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
David Shiffman and friends…
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Filmmaker Gloria Pancrazi (Coextinction) talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young about red herrings, fishy fish farms, whale watching, whale saving and Coextinction. “Orcas are telling us something. They’re showing us something. You can learn a lot about the things we’ve got to do in the world right now by looking at these orcas.”

Shownotes:

3:35 Meet Gloria Pancrazi and how the story of love for orcas turned into a mission to save the southern resident orcas.

6:12 “A lot of politicians like to blame whale watchers because then they can accept a pipeline that’s going to increase tanker traffic by seven- fold… you can go on and on about the impact of the Trans Mountain pipeline and how it’s going to impact southern resident orcas.”

8:38 “One of the biggest points of the movie is that everything is connected… it’s hard to pick one big issue.”

11:50 “It always fascinated us how the orcas are telling us something. They’s showing us something. You can learn a lot about the things we’ve got to do in the world right now by looking at these orcas.”

13:18 “They are each other’s home and we’re destroying that home.”

13:38 The first time she saw a whale:

15:35 Working for Cetus’s Straitwatch program in Canada and SoundWatch in the US and the challenges of keeping orcas safe from small boats.

22:04 Visiting OrcaLab. “It’s magical up there.”

25:28 The impacts of colonization and colonial trauma.

27:50 Where and how to see Coextinction.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
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Jason Colby (author of Orca: How We Came to Know and Love the Ocean’s Greatest Predator) talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young about the capture of Toki/Tokitae/Lolita/Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut and how Penn Cove almost ended the southern resident orcas and was the beginning of the end of the capture era. “It’s worth remembering that the argument at the time, if there could have been a debate at the time, it was really between whale catching and whale shooting, not whale catching and whale watching.”

Shownotes:

0:00 The voice of Toki.

4:08 Jason Colby on writing the book – or at least a very long chapter of his book – on Penn Cove.

6:05 “They eventually capture virtually all of these orcas behind nets. They estimate at the time around 90 individuals… The estimates vary but almost certainly the entire population of the Southern residents.”

7:43 “It’s worth remembering that the argument at the time, if there could have been a debate at the time, it was really between whale catching and whale shooting, not whale catching and whale watching.”

8:50 “Once they rounded them up, 90 to 100 animals, if Ted Griffin and his company would have wanted to and would have had the market to sell all 90 of them they could have done that. If they had wanted to shoot them all in the nets, they could have done that. There may have been a firearms violation, but there would be no sort of conservation law violation.”

10:30 “This must have been horrifically traumatic for these pods to be torn apart.”

11:20 How activists trying to free the orcas accidentally kill four baby orcas.

12:20 Hiding the bodies… “Whether it was illegal or not, it looks like a murder scene.”

14:20 Is Toki really L Pod or did she learn how to speak L Pod from Hugo in Miami?

20:04 “It was a generational loss.”

21:20 “If Griffin had done what the fisherman who was helping him demanded – which is to sell all of them all – you could have seen the entire population of Southern residents extinguished before we had even identified them scientifically as a population.”

23:00 How to help orcas today and the problems humans are creating for orcas today.

26:04 Toki talks.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
Jason Colby from Mark Leiren-Young’s award-winning documentary The Hundred Year-Old Whale
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Howard Garrett (Orca Network) remembering the southern resident orca Toki/Tokitae/Lolita/Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut and his nearly thirty year fight to bring Toki home to the Salish Sea. “Toki’s legacy is building, building, building by the day… She wasn’t just a circus animal. She was a member of the southern residents.”

Shownotes:

0:00 The voice of Toki.
4:57 How Howard started fighting to bring Toki home

7:50 “I really feel like she would have thrived and been thrilled and so relieved to be in her familiar waters.”

14:16 A superpod wake for Toki?

15:55 The Lummi Nation’s fight for Toki.

20:05  The origins of Toki’s names and becoming Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut.

21:44 “Her tank violated the very dismal standard of the animal welfare act…”

30:15 Getting the news that she was gone.

34:00 Toki’s legacy.

43:00 Toki speaks.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
Howard Garrett at a marine conference in Vancouver in 2017
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Author and biologist Rowena Rae on swimming with salmon, threats to this essential species and their incredible resilience with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young. “Salmon can thrive if we just give them a chance… if people would just get out of the way, they can thrive”.

Shownotes:

3:54 On becoming a biologist and leaving biology for writing.
7:12 Introducing young readers to the story of Rachel Carson.

9:20 Introducing Rachel Carson and the importance of Silent Spring.

12:20 Swimming with salmon.

14:07 Keystone species and why they matter.

19:oo  Humans Vs. Salmon; almost everything eats salmon  — salmon as “eco-system engineers”.

23:44 How to save Chinook salmon.

26:09 The fish farm jail-break in Washington State.

28:50 On the resilience of nature and salmon, and why to have hope. “They’re tenacious, they hang on … salmon can thrive if we just give them a chance”.

31:30 How we can help salmon.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.

Rowena Rae – author of Salmon: Swimming for Survival

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Shark expert Alessandro De Maddalena talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young about hunting for the perfect shark photo, the two orcas who are hunting great white sharks in South African waters, what makes great whites great and so much more! “The reason I love sharks is that they are a perfect art form. I consider Mother Nature the greatest artist.”

Shownotes:

4:22 How Alessandro De Maddalena fell for sharks as a kid and why sharks are cooler than dinosaurs.
9:00 Why he thinks the great white is great: “the first time I was watching a great white underwater it was magic… The reason I love sharks is that they are a perfect art form. I consider Mother Nature the greatest artist.”
13:10 Perfect predators and perfect book titles.
17:01 How little sharks care about humans. “Sharks care very little about humans. In most cases they don’t care at all.”
21:40 “The fear was born with Jaws…”
27:50 “People like to be afraid. People like monsters. People also like to create monsters.”
28:44 Leading Great White Shark expeditions.
33:40 His three best moments with sharks.
37:15 The truth behind the orcas attacking sharks in South Africa. No they are not a major threat to the great white shark population!
Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.

Alessandro De Maddalena

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Alessandro De Maddalena image – featured in Mark Leiren-Young’s book Sharks Forever

Sean Holman @Seanholman founder and lead of the Climate Disaster Project @cdp_community talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young @leirenyoung about the past and future of the media’s climate coverage, fighting fires with facts and sharing stories to save the future.

Shownotes:

5:00 Welcome Sean Holman. Why he challenged journalists to do better in their climate coverage.
10:57 The challenge of news cycles moving faster than science
15:10 “There is a lot that we can individually do about combat climate change creating collective action around that. as an example In the United States if everyone switched from eating beef to beans the United States would have actually met the greenhouse gas targets that were set by Obama.”
16:34 ““Almost all of us are climate disaster survivors in one way shape or form but many of us are also perpetrators of climate change as well in our individual lives.”
17:01 Climate impact on the oceans.
21:53 Climate impact on the economy
23:44 How the smoke from the 2017 BC Wildfire season changed the way he saw the world
26:40 The origins of the Climate Disaster Project and the importance of creating community
29:33 What gives Sean Holman hope
Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.

Sean Holman

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Photo via the BC Wildfire Service.

Jonathan Mesulam @MesulamJonathan Founder and Coordinator of the West Coast Development Foundation in New Guinea talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young @leirenyoung about the crucial fight to stop Deep Sea Mining in his home – New Guinea – and around the world.

Shownotes:

5:00 Welcome to Jonathan Mesulam
10:00 The importance of the church in fighting sea bed mining in New Guinea
12:20 Calling out Canada for allowing Canadian companies to mine in the waters off other countries
14:49 “No one knows the risk.”
16:23 On displacing communities. “If the sea is destroyed where are people going to get food?”
21:40 On leaving teaching to fight for the oceans.
25:12 “This fight is not really about us, it’s about everyone.”
27:00 All the places the sign we carried has traveled.
28:32 What he’d like Canadians to do. “We’re looking at the Pacific Ocean and it’s connecting you and me.Any activity on the Pacific Ocean is going to affect your coastline as well. The sea has no boundary… Canadians really need to speak up… Canadians should say no to sea bed mining… This project is a Canadian initiation.”
Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.

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Camille Labchuck
“We’ve got this obligation to animals as a society to try to help them if we can.”

“Canada hadn’t passed any serious new animal protection legislation since the eighteen hundreds. That’s pretty shocking to most people.”

“We’ve got this obligation to animals as a society to try to help them if we can.”

“We never would have come this far, and people never would have known about the industry, if not for Rob Stewart’s Sharkwater film in the first place. I mean, I don’t know about you, but that was definitely the first time that I was exposed to the idea that shark finning existed, and I think it’s what mobilized a lot of people to take action.”

“The problem Mark, is that animals are victims of crime. They can’t report abuse themselves. They can’t speak up for themselves if there’s no one around to listen. And they’re often isolated and kept behind closed doors by abusers and it’s very, very difficult for anyone to know or detect what’s going on.”

“I think the problem is that governments seem to think these days that their role is to protect businesses, their roles are to protect industry — and if some other aspect of our laws, including endangered species laws, it’s inconvenient. To that end, they’re happy just to disregard it.”

“It’s in the economic interests of many humans to keep animals in the position that they are right now and not elevate them to some other sort of status that has rights. So there’s no moral argument for it, and there’s no scientific argument. There really is only an economic argument and I don’t think that’s good enough to deny an entire class of billions and trillions of beings  basic fundamental rights and freedoms, like living in appropriate social groups, like having access to fresh air and water and life.”

“A lot of people say that we need to protect animals because they’re voiceless and we need to speak for them, and I think that’s a mistake too. I think it’s really clear that animals do have voices and they use them. They use them to tell us that they don’t like what they’re doing to us. Every time we see a calf escape a slaughter truck, every time we see a coyote try to gnaw his or her paw off to escape a leg hold trap, when they yell and they scream when they’re being sent to slaughter, they’re telling us that they don’t like what we’re doing to them. So I think it’s important to grant them that agency and recognize that they have voices. We just ignore it and silence those voices.”  

Camille Labchuk (@CamilleLabchuk) executive director of Animal Justice (@AnimalJustice) talks with Mark Leiren-Young (@Leirenyoung) about Canada’s new laws to cancel cetacean captivity and finish finning sharks and the fight for legal rights for animals and vegans. 

Skaana connects you with eco-heroes sharing ideas about oceans, eco-ethics, the environment and how you can change the world.

“Canada hadn’t passed any serious new animal protection legislation since the eighteen hundreds. That’s pretty shocking to most people.” – Camille Labchuk

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Vegan firefighter suing the government says he didn’t deserve hunger and humiliation: ‘I’m tired of nice’ | The Star

Canada’s new shark fin ban sets an example for the world

In passage of ‘Free Willy’ bill, Canada bans captivity and breeding of whales and dolphins

Environmentalism’s next frontier: giving nature legal rights

BREAKING NEWS: House votes to end shark fin sales in the U.S.

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Music:

Fin Donnelly (@FinDonnelly), NDP critic for Fisheries, Oceans and Canadian Coast Guard, on the history and future of his fight for a law to protect sharks and what you can do to help pass a new Canadian law to end Canada’s role in shark-finning.

To help turn this bill into law sign the Oceana petition to ban the sale and importation of shark fins.

 

These animals predate dinosaurs… and the scary thing is it could be on humans’ watch that we would lose them.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about  orcas, oceans and the environment.

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Fin Donnelly on Saving the Southern Resident Orcas

Links:

  1. Senator MacDonald: Shark finning is unsustainable, irresponsible and ecologically reckless
  2. MPs, senators unite to oppose ‘finning’ at premiere of ‘Sharkwater Extinction’
  3. Proposed federal shark fin ban a good ‘first step,’ Vancouver advocate says

Fin Donnelly

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Quotes from episode 10 with Zoe Hopkins. “Should tankers pass through these waters, the threat of a spill is not only a potential, it is a certainty. The only uncertainty is how long would we have to wait and how many times would it happen.” (from Kayak to Klemtu) 

“The ocean is a planetary issue, not a First Nations issue.”

Can a determined teenager stop a pipeline? Zoe Hopkins’ new movie, Kayak to Klemtu, was inspired by the battle to stop the Northern Gateway Pipeline. Mark Leiren-Young hosted Hopkins at the 2017 Victoria Film Festival where she talked about the inspirations behind her inspiring new movie.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about our environment, oceans, and orcas.

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The Hundred Year Old Whale coming soon to Vimeo 

AS A SPECIAL THANK YOU FOR FOLLOWING US we have an exclusive promo code to pre-buy the film. Use code “Skaana15” FOR 15% OFF the purchase price between June 1st and July 20th. The film will be yours to rent or own on July 21st. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thehundredyearoldwhale

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