Ocean Currents Radio Program

Show host Jennifer Stock provides a brief update about Ocean Currents program on pause due to COVID.

While solutions and efforts to reduce carbon emissions continue to build and expand, they are primarily land based. Guest Mansi Konar of the World Resource Institute shares how the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy analyzed ocean based solutions to contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the "emissions gap" while at the same time providing co-benefits for sustainable development goals.

1st half of show: Dr. Jarrod Santora of NOAA of the Southwest Fisheries Science Center talks about the cascading effects of a marine heatwave on whale prey, whale feeding, Dungeness crab season and whale entanglements and discusses new tools and collaborations to proactively address future marine heatwaves to minimize negative impacts to species. On the 2nd half of the show Dr. Melinda Connors, a conservation ecologist at SUNY Stony Brook discusses the amazing information bio loggers placed on albatrosses can tell us about not only their lives, but about activities on the high seas. Could they be defacto law enforcement on the high seas?

Recorded live from the E/V Nautilus, hear from marine scientists/explorers while at sea on an exploration mission of Cordell Bank and Greater Farallones national marine sanctuaries. What were they studying? finding?

January in Point Reyes means elephant seals are on the beaches in Point Reyes. Marine mammals that spend months away from shore and sometimes in our local CA national marine sanctuaries, but as far away as Russia and Hawaii make their way back annually to pup and breed. Dr. Sarah Allen shares some updates and new science about these amazing deep divers.

Two part show, 1st half, Dr. Steven Haddock of MBARI talks about the mysterious and alien world of jellies, specifically "By the Wind Sailors" that wash ashore in mass in spring time on the west coast. 2nd half of the show, Geoff Shester of Oceana talks about protecting forage fish (sardines) in CA and whats happening with conservation and management of these commercially valuable but ocean food web valuable species.

Recycling and reducing waste is a significant way to reduce the threat of marine debris and reduce carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to a warming planet.

With an unprecedented loss of kelp coverage on the Marin/Sonoma coast, the State Fish and Wildlife and Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary worked with experts to create a plan to understand the issue more and look to ways to protect and restore this vital habitat to the best of our abilities.

Lets hear it for Sex! Its the one thing that needs to happen to sustain our ocean and Dr. Marah J Hardt tells us some wild tales from beneath the waves. Deep sea worms, argonauts and more! (biological terms, but clean language!)

The Honorable Dr. Jane Lubchenco gave a lecture titled Hope for People and the Ocean at the SF State Estuary and Ocean Science Center in November, 2018. Listen in to hear about how policies have worked to bring overfished fisheries back and how new collaborations bring natural and social scientists together to focus on problems facing the ocean. Positively Ocean at the end focuses on how elephant seals have rebounded and how the Point Reyes National Seashore is working to protect them and humans from their presence on beaches.

Guests: Dr. Denise Hardesty of Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and Lisa Kaas Boyle Learn about the latest research about the accumulating marine debris problem in our global ocean. Do open ocean cleanup efforts effectively address the issue? On the second half of the show, learn about the new Straw law in California.

Part one: Dr. Craig Downs of the Haereticus Environmental Laboratory talks about the devastating findings about coral reef loss and the contribution of sunscreen chemicals to that loss, find out what these chemicals are and how to avoid them when protecting yourself from the sun. Part two: Marin/Sonoma beaches are among the finest in the world with beauty, ruggedness and biological diversity! Dr. Karina Nielsen of the Estuary and Ocean Science Center at SF State University shares her knowledge about what most of us don't notice on beaches.

Hear highlights from the 2018 Slowfish conference hosted by SlowFood San Francisco, bringing fishermen, buyers and chefs together to move towards "good, clean and fair fish" practices. On the 2nd half of the show hear about an amazing journey down the CA Coastal Trail with three UCSB Bren School of Environmental Science and Management graduates who took up the cause of raising awareness about the CA Coastal Trail and identifying whats needed to complete it by hiking the entire thing!

Meet a few of the Heirs to our Oceans who are a rising tide of young leaders who are taking on ocean conservation through education and activism.

Terry Sawyer, co-owner of Hog Island Oyster Company, board foundation member of the Tomales Bay Watershed Council and elected board member to the Marin Resource Conservation District talks about what projects are happening to address the health of Tomales Bay. As a stakeholder and oyster farmer, the health of the bay is of utmost importance, learn about upstream conservation actions and downstream monitoring activity that are helping all stakeholders learn more about this incredible body of water that is stewarded by NOAA/Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, Point Reyes National Seashore, CA State Parks and others.

Harbor porpoise disappeared from San Francisco Bay in the 1960's and 70's and in recent years have returned heartily. Biologist Bill Keener from the Golden Gate Cetacean Society talks about their return and filmmakers Jim Sugar and Jessica Sison talk about the film The Return of the Harbor Porpoise to San Francisco Bay, a award winning film that documents the history and good news story of the return of the porpoises to the once periled waters of the bay.

Hear some salty stories about sea foraging/fishing on the Northern CA coast as written about by expert sea forager/educator/fish monger Kirk Lombard.

Guest Dr. Aurora Torres of the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research talks about the growing crisis of sand mining. Overexploitation of global supplies of sand is damaging the environment, endangering communities, causing shortages and promoting violent conflict. Learn how an international team is looking at this issue through a systems integration approach.

Guest Cyndi Dawson a lead policy advisor on the Marine Protected Area Network in CA to the CA Ocean Protection Council, part of the CA Natural Resources Agency talks about the status of the entire state network of MPA’s, what baseline monitoring, education/outreach, enforcement and ongoing community partnerships are doing to help better manage and plan for the best possible outcomes for improving biomass in and outside of MPAs.

Author Marah J. Hardt shares stories from her book Sex in the Sea: Our Intimate Connection with Sex- Changing Fish, Romantic Lobsters, Kinky Squid, and Other Salty Erotica of the Deep (book title)