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.
Monthly Archives: October 2020
3 posts
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.
Visuals of the Pacific Garbage Patch and sea turtles with straws up their noses have captured people's attention. We want to do our part to help solve the marine plastic pollution problem, but is it really fair for big corporations to place this burden on the consumer? What about the developed countries that export their plastic waste to developing nations for them to process and recycle? It seems the plastic problem is one big cycle of placing the blame on the next receiver in the supply chain. In this episode, Ali Boden and Cass Nieman explore the passers and receivers of the marine plastic burden and discuss current and future solutions.