Big Deep - An Ocean Podcast

In today's episode, I speak with Sarah Richard founder of the world's largest community for female divers, Girls That Scuba, and the ancillary Girls That Free Dive.
With over 700,000 members in just under four years, the group has exploded onto the ocean scene and commands a powerful presence online. And much of that is simply because of Sarah's character and determination.
But having gotten to know Sarah over the past couple of years, we were able to speak a bit more deeply. And she shared how diving and free diving push her towards places she feels uncomfortable, the reactions, both positive and some not, to her forming a dive community focused on women, and how a simple moment on a dive in Panama still means much to her today.
Scuba Diving, Free Diving, Ocean Environmentalism, Surfing, and Marine Science.
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In this episode, I speak with Dr. Steve Gittings, chief science officer for NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. In addition to overseeing science at all 14 United States Marine sanctuaries, and being on numerous boards for ocean environmental organizations, he lives one of the most eclectic lives I know.
As an example, he spent time recording and studying humpback whale songs off Hawaii with National Geographic photographer, Flip Nicklin; became a self-identified garage-ineer as he created a deep water trap for invasive lionfish; and he's even spent substantial time as an underwater aquanaut in the undersea research center, Aquarius. He's even recently become a member of the Explorers Club after being nominated by none other than Sylvia Earl.
But even with that resume, the reason I did this interview with Steve was because he is just one of the best guys you could meet, and we spent a few nights carousing in a dive industry convention, and just kind of hit it off.
When we finally did our interview, Steve spoke about where his deep passion for the ocean started, why he loves piloting submarines, and an incredible evening dive off Little Cayman to watch a massive grouper spawn.
Scuba Diving, Free Diving, Ocean Environmentalism, Surfing, and Marine Science.
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In today's episode, I speak with former pro surfer, surf journalist, and Fullbright scholar Jamie Brisick.

I originally met Jamie as he grew up in Southern California with a close friend of mine, who thought he might be a great guest for the show. And he was, both contemplative and fun to talk to.

Jamie told me how he discovered his lifelong passion for surfing at an early age in Malibu, and before long he was traveling the world on the pro surf tour. After years of surfing on the tour, he then began writing about the tour, which lead to the next stage of being a surf journalist and his work has appeared in the New Yorker, the Guardian, the New York Times, and the Surfer's Journal.

And in our discussion, Jamie talked about the amazing times of what it was like to be a pro surfer and the demands that it made, how surfing the ocean helped him through a tragic time in his life, and an incredible insight he had one night while chasing waves in the Maldives.
Scuba Diving, Free Diving, Ocean Environmentalism, Surfing, and Marine Science.
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In this episode, I speak with journalist, filmmaker, and ocean activist Alexandra Cousteau. Alexandra has a long legacy of working to protect our world's oceans and is the founder of Oceans 2050.
She is also on the board of the incredible environmental organization Oceana, which works to protect and restore the oceans on a global scale, and it was Oceana who originally connected me with Alexandra.
If Alexandra's last name sounds familiar, it's because she continues the work of her grandfather was Jacques-Yves Cousteau, and her father Philippe Cousteau. Continuing that legacy, Alexandra has also stood at the forefront of the world ocean advocacy ocean community, and we talked at length about her personal and family connection to the oceans, what the legacy of being a Cousteau meant for her as she established her own path in ocean advocacy, and how she was changed forever by a day snorkeling with her daughter in the Phillipines.
Scuba Diving, Free Diving, Ocean Environmentalism, Surfing, and Marine Science.
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In today's episode, I speak with Doug Anderson, considered to be one of the world's best underwater cameramen.
Doug works on primarily what are called blue chip wildlife films, which try to tell compelling stories focused on a specific animals in magnificent pristine landscapes, and have budgets in the area of $1 million per hour or more.
For Doug, this has meant traveling the world to film in the world's most rugged and remote oceans for such films as BBC's Our Planet, Frozen Planet, and Life. And then more recently, David Attenborough's high profile Netflix series Our Planet.
But for someone who has had such incredible career success, Doug was tremendously down to earth, and fun to talk with. And he shared stories about why it's so hard to shoot in the underwater environment, how he approaches being so close to large wild animals in the ocean, and an incredible moment of filmmaking he had off Antarctica with what is sometimes called the finger of death.
Scuba Diving, Free Diving, Ocean Environmentalism, Surfing, and Marine Science.
Please give us ★★★★★, leave a review, and tell your friends about us as each share and like makes a difference.

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