Tag Archives: Ocean Life Education

Our Inspiring Team of Marine Biologists

 

Updating the team page on our website this month made us think that it’s about time to do a blog post dedicated to the incredible people who make our programs so popular – the wonderful crew at Ocean Life Education!

We really do have the best team imaginable who all have one thing in common – their passion for the ocean and their enthusiasm for wanting to share their knowledge and educate others about the big blue.

So, here we report back on what the inspirational crew at Ocean Life Education love about the ocean and why they want to shout about it!

A Passion for the Ocean pistol shrimp and gobie

Our educators tell us that they are driven by a deep passion for the ocean due to key factors that have resulted from childhood or ocean experiences. That’s why we believe that giving children the opportunity to experience ocean life firsthand is key to harbouring a love of the ocean. Here’s what they say…

Reasons our Team Say they Love the Ocean

Fascination with Marine Life: The incredible diversity of marine organisms, from the smallest plankton to the largest whales, captures the imagination. The intricate behaviours, unique adaptations, and complex ecosystems of marine life provide endless opportunities for discovery and study.

 

pistol shrimp and gobieOur educator’s favourite ocean animals are diverse, ranging from the tiniest nudibranch, pistol shrimps and gobies, to turtles, humpback whales and graceful manta rays. What an impressive range, demonstrating  just how incredible life in the ocean is.

 

Environmental Stewardship: A desire to protect and preserve ocean ecosystems against the increasing threats to marine environments, such as pollution, overfishing, and climate change, drive them to work towards conservation and sustainability.

 

Whale Rescue Coolum 1996

Whale Rescue Coolum 1996

Many of our educators have worked on environmental projects themselves. Director of Education, Richard Coward, has been involved in research projects such as buoyancy syndrome turtle research, shark research and breeding programs.

Many staff, including Richard, have also been involved in rescues, resulting in the release of whales and turtles (amongst other species) back into the wild.

Check out this picture of the rescue that Richard was involved in.

 

Love of Exploration: The ocean is still largely unexplored, offering a sense of adventure and the allure of uncovering new species, unknown habitats, and geological features.

The mystery and vastness of the ocean inspire curiosity and a spirit of discovery in our crew.

“I was amazed when I went diving at night in Papua New Guinea and was lucky enough to experience a coral spawning event in an ocean that was glowing with bioluminescence (the production and emission of light by a living organism – seen in the image). It just blew my mind! Another time, I was awe-struck when I went diving with a smack (yes, the collective name!) of sea jellies (aka jelly fish). Magic moments that I will treasure forever…and there’s so much more to come!!”

 

Growing Up on the Coast

Connection to Nature: Our educators all love the ocean, often stemming from childhood experiences, such as beach visits, snorkelling, or scuba diving. This personal connection fuels a lifelong passion for studying and protecting marine environments.

Great-Barrier-Reef-Most of our educators were lucky enough to have grown up next to the ocean in Queensland or NSW. The East Coast of Australia is probably one of the best places on earth to grow up if you love the ocean!

These factors combine to create a strong passion among our team for the ocean and its inhabitants, driving them to be the inspirational educators that they are!

Find out more about our inspirational team

Fancy a career in Marine Biology?

Here’s a link to our other news

And a link to our programs

OCEAN NEWS – Watching Queensland’s Humpback Migration

humpback whale migration map

This Month:

Celebrating Queensland’s Humpback Migration, FREE migration calendar, How whale poo fights climate change, Humpback fast facts, Teaching Human Impact, Out & About this month, Ocean Creature Feature. 

Woohoo!!!! The Humpbacks are Back

It’s that exciting time of year when humpback whales migrate up and down the Queensland coastline from the Antarctic to mate and give birth in warmer waters. The arrival of the whales is celebrated throughout East Coast Australia and we reckon it’s the greatest show on earth! Why not head down to the coast and join in the celebration?

Read our BLOG to find out when and where to see the Annual Humpback Migration on East Coast Australia and learn a whole lot more about it.

Click below for our downloadable FREE Humpback Migration Calendar (see foot of email)

the whale pump

 

How Whale Poo Fights Climate Change – The Whale Pump

As whales surface from deep dives to breathe and poo, they circulate huge amounts of nutrients from the sea floor. This process is called the “Whale Pump”.

The whale poo acts as an excellent fertiliser for ocean plants called phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is at the bottom of the food chain and is a very important primary producer (food source) for the marine ecosystem. It also removes millions of tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere and produces huge amounts of oxygen.

These tiny organisms (phytoplankton) absorb one-third of the carbon dioxide humans breathe out. They also produce half of the planet’s oxygen. So, as you can see, keeping this process working and our oceans healthy is crucial to our survival!

During long migrations, such as the one currently taking place off the East Coast of Australia, whales travel from nutrient-rich areas to nutrient-poor areas. This journey transports essential nutrients across the ocean in a process known as the “Great Whale Conveyor Belt”. So, whale migration has a big impact on the health of our oceans too.

Over 20,000 humpback whales are traveling up our coast right now! This is an amazing opportunity to teach students curriculum topics using an iconic, local theme. What better way to bring learning to life than to host an Ocean Life Education incursion at your school, then take a trip out to watch the amazing spectacle happening firsthand here in Queensland?

Programs & Free Resources

 

humpback fast facts

Humpbacks Course & Resources

https://mcusercontent.com/405f8237b6c23565cb7165b4c/images/aae32cbb-9566-1964-aa0c-5dde10041e69.png

Want to learn more about Australia’s iconic humpback whales?Check out our online course and teaching resources. – Both contain awesome videos, infographics, maps, fast facts, quizzes, and more!

Our Programs: Teaching Human Impact

Our Human Impact program  ‘The Earth Under Threat’ aims to educate and inspire children to want to learn more and protect our oceans.

Students:

  • Learn what humans do can harm the marine environment
  • Identify how changes to the marine environment; like weather patterns, land clearing, over-fishing, and pollution, affect it, its creatures, and us
  • Realise individuals can make a difference in caring for the marine environment and the need for all humans to accept personal responsibility for protecting it

To find out more, click HERE

Key dates coming up:

September 2022

4th  – National Wildlife Day

7th  – Threatened Species Day

18th – World Clean Up Day

17th – Int. Coastal Cleanup Day

17th – World Manta Day

18th – Sea Otter Awareness Week

24th – Fish Amnesty Day

 

Support a whale charity:

Whale & Dolphin Conservation
Marine Conservation
Sea Shepherd
Humpbacks & Highrises

 

DOWNLOAD FREE MIGRATION CALENDAR

OCEAN NEWS – July 2022

This Month:

Colour-Changing Sharks, Shark Awareness Day, Bringing Adaptation to Life in the Classroom, Plastic Free July FREE Resources, Humpback Whale Teaching Resources, Out & About, & Ocean Creature of the Month.

 

Colour-Changing Sharks

Recent experiments suggest that great white sharks are able to change color, from light to dark grey, in a matter of hours. This is thought to be in order to camouflage themselves from potential prey.

Sharks have been around for over 420 million years, that’s way before the dinosaurs came along. Their formidable ability to hunt (they have around 300 teeth and mind-blowing sensory ability) and the fact they have adapted so well to changing environments have enabled them to survive earth’s “big five” mass extinctions.

This new discovery could be further evidence of the awesome abilities of sharks to hunt and adapt to survive.

Read full newsletter…

Ocean News July 2022

Bringing Nature into the Classroom

 

“Bringing nature into the classroom can kindle a fascination and passion for the diversity of life on earth and motivate a sense of responsibility to safeguard it”,

Sir David Attenborough.

 

Ocean Life Education’s Director of Education, Richard Coward, is a firm believer that education is the key to protecting the ocean. So, Richard has spent the past 14 years visiting schools, early learning centres and community events, passionately educating and inspiring young minds to feel a responsibility to protect the our seas.

“Our goal is to educate Australians about how our lives are interconnected with our oceans and to inspire them to feel a responsibility to take action to protect them”, Richard Coward, Director of Education, Ocean Life Education.

 

A Passion for Protecting the Ocean

Ocean Life Education was set up in 2006 by Director of Education and Marine Biologist, Richard Coward. Richard studied Marine Ecology at Queensland’s Griffith University and commenced his career running Sunshine Coast’s Underwater World education programs and was later promoted to Curator of Fishes.

Richard went on to work on the creation of a new aquarium in South Korea. Whilst diving in the ocean, he was astonished by the complete lack of marine life. This was the first time he had experienced first-hand the devastating consequences of human impact caused by over-fishing. This education inspired him to take action. Richard saw this as a wakeup call and was determined this was not going to be allowed to happen in Australia. Thus, his passion for protecting the ocean was born.

Richard’s career went off down many paths: managing exhibits in aquariums worldwide and working with sharks, seals, penguins, turtles, sea jellies, fish, octopus, and invertebrates, to name a few.  He has been involved in research projects and breeding programs as well as whale rescue and his knowledge has frequently been reported on television, including a whole feature on the Totally Wild television show. Throughout all this, promoting conservation has always been at the heart of what he does.

 

Taking the Ocean into the Classroom

Richard soon realised that educating future generations was the key to them understanding why the ocean is so important to us and inspiring them to take action to protect it. “You protect what you love”, he quotes.

But many children were unable to get to the ocean or even to an aquarium to experience ocean life first-hand, so the idea of taking the ocean to the classroom was hatched and Ocean Life Education was born.

 

Our Programs & Marine Educators

Since 2006, Ocean Life Education has promoted the protection of our oceans to hundreds and thousands of Australians throughout Queensland and New South Wales. Our aim is to bring the sea to the community or classroom.  Marine educators arrive with live marine animals, fascinating artefacts, games and resources and students get a hands-on experience interacting with the animals. They hopefully finish off knowledgeable and inspired to want to protect the ocean and passionate to tell their friends and families why they should do the same.

                       

Our Programs

Early Learning – Ocean Discovery Program https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/programs/early-learning/

Primary – Curriculum based and tailored themes and activities https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/programs/primary-schools/

Holiday Programs (OSHC) – Human Impact, Sharks, Weird & Wonderful https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/programs/holiday-program/

High School – Curriculum based and tailored themes and activities https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/programs/high-school/

Events – live marine displays, beach walks, lectures, workshops (tailored to requirement) https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/programs/events/

 

Further reading

For more information about what we can all do to protect the ocean, check out our blog:

https://www.oceanlifeeducation.com.au/how-can-i-protect-the-ocean/

 

Hope to see you soon!