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A striking photograph of the Blue Shark (Prionace glauca). Credit to underwater photographer Joost van Uffelen. This month’s article series will discuss Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France. Saint Jean De Luz is a small fishing town in the center of the Bay of Biscay, along the Western Coastline of France. Its name is derived from Saint Jean, & the fact that the city was flooded often over its centuries of existence. Saint Jean De Luz means “Saint Jean’s Swamp”, as the town occasionally is flooded to the point of being partially underwater. It is near the border between France & Spain, in the Basque Region. The city itself is approximately 7 square miles, with a population density of roughly 2,000 people per square mile. The city is well known for its fisheries, wildlife, beaches, casino, spas, & luxurious resorts. Both international & domestic tourists flock to the area seeking relaxation, & a tranquil atmosphere. Many festivals & events are held in the town, as it is an accessible location to both the French, & the Spanish. The coastline around the city is the site of many fisheries, & marine animals. One of the marine animals that thrives in these waters, is the Blue Shark (Prionace glauca). The Blue Shark is a species of requiem shark that inhabits both temperate & tropical waters worldwide. Individuals are found as far north as Norway, & as far south as central Chile. They are named for their blue skin. They are known to feed on squid & small fish. Generally, they live in shallow waters, but they are able to survive in waters as deep as 1,575 feet. The meat of the Blue Shark is heavily sought after in the Mediterranean, though it is high in mercury, lead, & various harmful heavy metals. Additionally, their skin is occasionally used for leather, & their fins are sought after for use in shark fin soup. Aside from this, their relationship with humans is generally positive. In this article, we shall discuss the discovery & life of the blue shark, the mating strategies of the blue shark, the distribution of the blue shark, & the scientific details of the blue shark. With that being said, let us delve into the blue shark. The Discovery & Life of the Blue Shark The blue shark was described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus, a Swedish taxonomist, naturalist, biologist, & zoologist. Individuals can get up to 13 feet long, but they often only reach 10 feet in length. They are able to reach a hefty 401 pounds, however, they often weigh far less. Rarely, female specimens have been recorded weighing up to 862 pounds. There is slight sexual dimorphism between females & males, with females being larger. Although the lifespan of the blue shark is not clear, it is hypothesized to be between 17 & 23 years. Blue sharks are fantastic communicators, & are intelligent animals. They are generally very friendly animals, & are considered to be mild-mannered sharks. While Individuals are typically not aggressive towards humans, there have been cases of them attacking divers unprovoked. Between 1850 & 2026, there have been 13 recorded bite cases, 4 of which were fatal. Aside from these rare cases, they typically do not interact with humans in the wild. Blue sharks are one of the most social species of requiem sharks, often congregating in small groups to go hunting. Individual sharks do not have individual territories, & tend to migrate often. They are not territorial animals, & are usually not aggressive towards each other. Sharks swim by continuous undulations of their body, meaning that they repeatedly move themselves side-to-side, which propels them forward. If faced with a threat, they are able to swim up to 43 miles (69.2018 kilometers) per hour to avoid being caught. They are incredibly agile animals, & can move through the water column with quick ease. Sharks are able to remain buoyant by storing extra oil in their livers, which is lighter than the water around them. Individuals are able to sleep by turning off only half of their brains. They must keep the majority of their brain active, such that if a threat approaches, they can react to it quickly & save themselves. Unlike certain other requiem sharks, they do not have a ram ventilation system, meaning that they do not need to have water constantly flowing over their gills to remain alive. They are able to stop swimming while still absorbing the oxygen from the water. The blue shark is a carnivore, & its diet consists of squid, small fish, octopi, lobster, shrimp, crab, & occasionally seals. They are not cannibalistic at any time in their lives. Their metabolism is very efficient, meaning that they are able to turn stored carbohydrates into energy easily. Their methods for locating prey are also incredibly efficient, with 3 major methods for locating prey. Individuals are able to find prey through smell, sight, & electromagnetic fields. Due to their large size, very few animals even have the ability to prey upon them. Their primary predators are other large shark species, & orcas. The blue shark has a long, slender, streamlined body, with a sharp conical nose. They are known for their large eyes, light blue skin, & narrow pectoral fin. As of 2026, they are categorized as Least Threatened by the IUCN Red List. Their population was found to be decreasing globally, with this last assessment being on November 6th, 2018. The Mating Procedures, Practices, Strategies, Techniques, Tactics, & Habits of the Blue Shark Blue sharks breed via internal fertilization, & have 2 distinct sexes. They are not naturally hermaphroditic. Their breeding system is polyamorous, meaning that each breeding season, both male & female sharks will have different breeding partners. Male individuals seem to reach sexual maturity at 4 to 6 years of age, while females mature slightly later at 5 to 7 years of age. It is not clear how often breeding occurs, the most births that we are aware of occur from December to April. For the children to be born on time, breeding would likely occur from January to August. Their gestational period is between 9 & 12 months depending on conditions. It is not clear how copulation is initiated, however is known that they breed via internal fertilization. After copulation, the male will swim off, having no more part in the children’s or mother’s life. Females are viviparous, meaning that they give live birth & the children gestate in their uterus, instead of in an egg. Once the female is ready to give birth, she will swim to shallower waters, & have her sharp pups. This species is renowned for the large number of babies they have in each litter, which ranges from 25 to 100 pups. After birthing her children, the female will go to deeper water, leaving the children to fend for themselves. The Distribution of the Blue Shark Blue sharks are found in most temperate & tropical waters worldwide. As of 2026, they are found as far north as Northern Norway, & as far south as Central Chile. They are found in at least 3 of the 5 oceans. Although they prefer shallower coastal waters, they are found at depths of up to 3,280 feet. They are migratory animals, & frequently migrate long distances. The Scientific Details Of The Blue Shark Blue sharks have approximately 14 teeth on their upper jaw, & 13 to 15 teeth on their lower jaw. Their teeth are sharp, pointy, & triangular, making them efficient for ripping fish apart. Sharks do not have traditional bones, & they instead have cartilaginous skeletons. As a species, they have existed for at least 5.3 million years. As of 2026, we could not find any records of fossilized blue sharks. Similar to humans, Great Blue sharks have various kinds of parasites. Their primary internal parasites are nematodes, which infect their intestines, & their primary external parasites are copepods, which infect their skin & their gills. Their phylum is Chordata, meaning that they developed these 5 characteristics all species under the phylum of chordata develop 5 similar characteristics either in adulthood or as juveniles. The characteristics that they develop include, a notochord, dorsal hollow nerve cord, endostyle or thyroid, pharyngeal Slits, & a post-anal tail. Their class is Chondrichthyes. This is a class of fish that is primarily composed of cartilage. This class can be compared to the class Osteichthyes, which is a class of fish that are primarily composed of bone. A few universal characteristics for any fish in the class Chondrichthyes is that they all are jawed vertebrates, they have paired fins, paired nares, scales, & a heart with chambers in a series. Their order is that of Carcharhiniformes. This order has approximately 270 species categorized under it, & is characterized by two dorsal fins, anal fins, & five gill slits. Their family is that of Carcharhinidae, which are commonly known as requiem sharks. The majority of these sharks are found in tropical areas. This family of sharks has existed since at least the Valanginian age. Their genus is that of Prionace. Their genus is monotypic, meaning there is only 1 species belong to it. Their binomial name is Prionace glauca. A shallow-water photograph of a Blue Shark with a diver. Credit to Blue Shark Snorkel. Directories / Credits Citation No. 1: “Blue Shark”, Written by the Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica, & Published on May 27th, 1999. Published by Britannica. Retrieval Date: May 19th, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/animal/blue-shark Citation No. 2: “Blue Shark: Prionace Glauca”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by the Atlantic Shark Institute. Retrieval Date: May 19th, 2024. https://www.atlanticsharkinstitute.org/blueshark Citation No. 3: “Blue Shark: Prionace Glauca”, Written by The Accessors For The International Union For The Conservation Of Nature, & Last Updated November 6th, 2018. Published by the International Union For The Conservation Of Nature. Retrieval Date: May 19th, 2024. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/39381/2915850 Citation No. 4: “Blue Shark: Prionace Glauca”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Oceana. Retrieval Date: May 19th, 2024. https://oceana.org/marine-life/blue-shark/ Citation No. 5: “Spiral valve parasites of blue & common thresher sharks as indicators of shark feeding behaviour and ecology”, Written by Antonella Preti, Ken MacKenzie, Kate A. Spivey, Leslie R. Noble, Catherine S. Jones, Ralph G. Appy, & Graham J. Pierce, & Published on April 26th, 2020. Published by the Journal of Fish Biology. Retrieval Date: May 19th, 2024. https://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/218606/1/Spiral_valve_OA_2020.pdf Citation No. 6: “Blue Shark Facts: Size, Habitat, Reproduction“, Written by Anne Marie Helmenstine, & Published on January 22nd, 2020. Published by ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/blue-shark-facts-4174680 Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast Cash Daniels Tides of Tomorrow The Open Book, Topanga Olivenbaum Music Pitfire Artisan Pizza Our Loyal Patrons P. R. Ochoa

A distinguished portrait of Quentin Rodgers, representing Surf Rider-Chicago. Here he is featured with his Softop Surf Board from Mick Fanning SoftBoards. Credit to Quentin Rodgers. Recently, our head writer was fortunate enough to sit down for an interview with Ocean Conservationist & Vice Chair of Surf-Rider Chicago Quentin Rodgers. Quentin Rodgers is an Ocean Conservationist & Vice Chair of Surf-Rider Chicago known for his work with the Surf Rider Foundation. In today’s interview, we sit down with Quentin to discuss his illustrious career, his work in science communication, his work in marine science, & his passion for the sea in a comprehensive 18-question interview. Before delving into today’s interview, please note everything said has been edited for clarity, & that the opinions of our interviewee do not necessarily reflect the opinions & values of our organization. With that being said, let us delve into the contents of the interview! The Contents of the Interview Questions About His Passion: 1. What sparked your passion for the ocean & marine science? I would definitely say it’s a mix of always being someone who loved science & also loved nature. I guess the thing that specifically got me into it was my first trip to Australia. I had gone to Western Australia around Margaret River, which is on the Western Coast. It’s kind of a surf town. It’s known for a professional surfing competition that takes place every single year called the Margaret River Pro. That was the reason why I was there, to go see the competition for myself for the first time. It’s maybe a few hours from Perth. That was kind of my first true introduction to the ocean. Ever since then I’ve been a lot more focused on protecting the beaches, protecting the waters, you name it! 2. What sparked your passion for surfing? It was initially my passion for skateboarding that got me into surfing. Ironically enough, the thing that sparked my passion for surfing was a video game that I played as a kid. It was called Kelly Slater’s Pro Surfer. It came out in the early 2000s. I had the demo on a skateboarding game, & after playing that, I was really in awe of surfing. I was looking up YouTube videos, or whatever I could, trying to get as much surfing in as I possibly could as well. 3. Was there any particular person, place, moment, or piece of media that assisted in sparking your passion? When it comes to people, obviously Kelly Slater, who’s known as the greatest of all time. He’s kind of the Tony Hawk of surfing with 11 world titles. He competed up until I want to say 2023, started competing in 1989. He was inspiring, as were other surfers such as Andy Irons, & Stephanie Gilmore, who is currently competing to this day. As for types of media, I would probably say Rocket Power, the cartoon, got me into it as well. 4. What is your favourite terrestrial, or marine animal? I would probably have to give 2 answers for this one. My favourite marine animal would be orcas. I love orcas. My favourite terrestrial animal would be the Tasmanian Devil. Something interesting about Tasmanian Devils that a lot of people don’t really know, which we just found out in 2022, is that they are capable of biofluorescence. We found this out in 2022 at a zoo in Toledo, Ohio. They are capable of biofluorescence around their face, around their ears, mouth, & nose. It’s pretty interesting. I know that wombats, & I believe that platypuses are also biofluorescent. A photograph of a Tasmanian Devil exhibiting biofluorescence. Biofluorescence occurs when an organism absorbs UV light, & reemits it. It is important to note that this is distinct from bioluminescence, as in biofluorescence, an organism does not produce its own light, it simply reemits light. Credit to the Toledo Zoo. https://www.toledozoo.org/ Questions About His Work: 5. How would you describe the Surf Rider Foundation to someone who isn’t familiar? The Surf Rider Foundation is an environmental protection nonprofit. I would sum it up in two phrases. The first phrase is environmental protection of our coastlines, beaches, & waters, & the second is recreational advocacy, which means making sure that as many people have access to our beaches as well as waters to enjoy them. 6. How did you join Surf Rider-Chicago, & what is your current position with them? I joined Surf Rider-Chicago in 2021. I was looking for environmental protection groups that were near me that I could join & get involved in, since I love nature, & I wanted to do my part. I initially joined them through their website. I started looking for chapters, because they have a database of all their chapters. There are about 80 chapters for Surf Rider, & you can access them all on their website. There are quite a few on the West Coast, as well as the East Coast, & obviously up here in the Great Lakes, which was the closest one to me. I live in Indiana, & we don’t have a chapter, but I’m a part of the Chicago Chapter. As of February of this year (2026), I am the Vice Chair of the Chicago Chapter. A photograph of the official Surf-Rider Foundation Logo. Credit to the Surf Rider Foundation. 7. What are your responsibilities in your capacity as Vice Chair? I support the chair, I take over for the chair when they might not be available. I lead the chapter in my various base mission projects. I’m currently in the process of spearheading one right now that we will be talking about later. 8. How would you describe your Great Lakes Friendly Restaurant program? It’s pretty much an offshoot of a larger program called the Ocean Friendly Restaurants program that Surf Rider has. Think of it as a community-building program where we support restaurants, lift them as examples of success to influence plastic reduction legislation, & provide them with tons of benefits. Everything from marketing gear, to stickers & brochures, to even listing them on our national website. We also provide them with access to vendor discounts. A good example that I like to point to is a restaurant in Chicago called JT’s Genuine Sandwich Shop, they’ve saved about 25,000$ per year after switching to reusable dining-ware. They’re one of the case studies we did research on. I think what people miss about sustainability is the long-term expectation. In the short term, it seems pretty expensive, but in the long term, it does pay its way. It does pay back. You know, it just takes dedication. It takes dedication to go through with it. 9. How would you describe your Blue Water Task Force program? The Blue Water Task Force is actually going to be the program that I’m spearheading for the Chicago chapter. It’s basically a network of volunteer laboratories by different chapters of Surf Rider. We’re testing for different bacteria levels throughout the year. We’re covering the parts of the year that the state typically doesn’t or won’t test. For example, around here, the state will test for E. Coli during the height of summer when people are out on the beach. After a certain period of time or a certain month, let’s say September, they stop testing & they won’t test again until May or June. What the Blue Water Task Force is doing is that we’re covering all the other months. That way we can provide consistent monthly results to the public, as people go into the water throughout the year, even after the state or municipalities stop testing. People are still going into the water. People are going into the water in October, November, December, or the beginning of the year as well. The state isn’t doing testing during those parts of the year. We’re filling that gap, & uploading the results to our website, so that people can check. We update them based on the most recent tests. I’m spearheading a Blue Water Task Force Program for the Chicago Chapter, we’ll be testing three sites starting out. I believe two in Chicago, & one in Indiana where I live. We’re going to be testing during the off months, when the state isn’t testing. We are currently in talks with a couple of universities to partner with us for testing, since starting a laboratory is fairly expensive. I don’t know one of the sites off-hand, but I know we are testing one site called Montrose Beach. It’s one of the most popular beaches in the entire city. Then, in Indiana, we’re testing a site called Whihala Beach. Whihala is this stretch of beach that’s in Indiana. It has a lot of traffic that goes into it throughout the year. It’s a well-known surf spot in the region as well. Another important reason why we’re also testing is that it’s near a lot of refineries & industrial companies such as BP & U.S. Steel. With people going into the water throughout the year, I feel like we felt it was an important place to focus on as well. We’re currently spearheading that project; hopefully, we can get it started by September of this year (2026). People can find out results, once we get them uploaded, on Surf Rider’s website for the Blue Water Task Force Program. They operate a website solely for this project, where all chapters upload their data for all the sites that they tested for things like E. Coli, especially for bigger beaches. For example, Whihala is a fairly long beach, so you have to test more than one site within the site if that makes sense. For all of the Blue Water Task Force sites that we test, you can see how often we test each site, as well as the results of that testing. We signify results through colour-coding. Green means that it is fairly safe. Yellow means that it’s moderate, kind of heed our warning before proceeding. Red is obviously the most dangerous level, meaning you probably shouldn’t be going into the water. It’s fully accessible to the public. 10. How would you describe your Beach Cleanup program, & how often do you conduct beach cleanups? Our beach cleanup program is spearheaded by one of our executive committee members named Steve Arnam. He’s been spearheading it for who knows how long, absolute legend. Our beach cleanup programs consist of going to two beaches & removing debris. We go 4 times a year. We’re trying to access more beaches, because we have noticed other beaches that definitely need a cleanup. We have two at Montrose beach in Chicago, & then we have two at my home beach, Whihala Beach. We actually just had one last Saturday! We had quite a bit of turnout. Even one of the city council members had joined in. A photograph of the beautiful Whihala Beach along Lake Michigan. Credit to https://www.southshorecva.com/. For the most part, we recovered about 900 pounds of trash from the beach alone. We also unfortunately discovered 3 deceased birds, one of which was clearly a result of plastic pollution. It had a piece of plastic, like a circular piece of plastic around its beak, to the point where it couldn’t eat anything. It was unfortunate, but things like that are why we do what we do. Things like that are why we do what we do, to ensure that stuff like that happens as rarely as possible. In total, we found two pigeons, & one toothed bird. One of them was fresh I think, we don’t know what caused it to pass away. 11. Type 6 Plastic, PS (Polystyrene) commonly known as styrofoam, is one of the most destructive types of plastic due to its tendency to fragment. Surf Rider-Chicago is currently working to ban the sale of foam food service containers in the state of Illinois. Do you mind guiding us through your “Ban The Foam, Save The Shore” program? Our Ban The Foam, Save Shore Program is to ban the sale & distribution of foam food service containers in Illinois. A few years ago there was a proposed bill by Illinois lawmakers called Senate Bill 1531, which was looking to ban polystyrene foam food containers. Right now, it’s kind of in limbo. We’re doing our part. We’re working with other organizations as well, such as the Alliance for the Great Lakes, as well as the Illinois Environmental Council to try to get this legislation passed, as well as other related legislation passed as well: 12. How would you describe your Sustain the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative? The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is not a program that we are spearheading, though we are involved in it. It’s more of an EPA federal government program. A lot of funds that we, tribal governments, states, & municipalities receive will come from this initiative. It’s the largest Great Lakes investment in over 20 years. This program has funded over 8,000 projects, with over $4 billion. The funds are distributed to the EPA, & subsequently distributed accordingly. We target some of the biggest threats to the Great Lakes ecosystem such as toxic substances, like hexavalent chromium, invasive species, & non-point source pollution impacts. When we had our Hill Day event, which is an event where Surf Rider & Congressional offices will interact with each other to talk about various policies, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative was one of our talking points, because it’s extremely important. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has done wonders in many states here in the Great Lakes Region, & it has tons of bipartisan support. We’re going to continue to do our best to get more funding for it, that way it can be supported for years to come, because we see how good things get when we work together & run this initiative. 13. What does your schedule look like week-to-week or day-to-day? As Vice Chair, I’m dedicating at most 6 hours, sometimes a bit more per week to focus on the various projects that we are working on. Whether that be stuff related to the Blue Water Task Force Program that I’m trying to get set up for our chapter here in Chicago, or even other campaigns that we’re working on. It’s fairly busy. On a daily basis, not so much, but on a weekly basis, it accumulates. With the project that I’m spearheading, it’s a lot to do, but at the same time, we kind of get a bit of a break every now & then, which is nice. 14. If someone were interested in volunteering with Surf Rider-Chicago, how would they approach you all? You can approach us on our website. Google “Surf Rider-Chicago”, & we will show up. Immediately on our website, you have the volunteer tab. Also, you can approach us on Instagram, which is chicago_surfrider. You can follow us there, we post our events whenever we have them. You can even copy the events from our website directly onto your phone’s calendar. 15. What has been your biggest triumph or proudest moment across your career? My proudest movement with Surf Rider, I would definitely say it’s tied between two things. One thing I would say is that my proudest moment was when I was voted as Vice Chair in February of this year (2026). It’s something I was really hoping for, for so long. To help out, do my part, & join an amazing team is wonderful. The other was a triumph sometime in June of last year. Surf Rider & a couple of other organizations won a lawsuit against the EPA, related to their not doing what they’re supposed to do. This case lasted about two to three years, & it concluded last year in June of 2025. It was related to the EPA not revising its standards when it came to accounting for new technologies when it came to capturing or reducing pollution. They didn’t revise their standards when it came to these innovations to reduce the amount of pollution that we were receiving. I believe they had 56 standards they were supposed to revise, or that they could revise, but when reviewing each standard, most had not been revised at all. Some of them had not been revised since the 1970’s. There were tons of different guidelines & standards that they had for capturing pollution for different corporations. In the decision made by the courts, it was decided that while the EPA had a certain level of discretion before deciding what standards to revise, they don’t have unlimited total discretion to ignore everything, especially when Surf Rider as well as several other organizations were reaching out to them about what was going on, & telling them that they need to revise some of their standards. 16. I’m sure that you have faced just as many challenges & setbacks as you have leaps forward, what has been the biggest hurdle or challenge that you have faced across your career, & how did you overcome it? I would cite the biggest obstacle that I’ve had as being able to make time to do as much as I do with Surf Rider. With my life being as busy as it was, & as it is, it was really difficult to find time to go to various events, beach cleanups, & take part in various campaigns as much as I wanted to. I couldn’t because I was stuck at work or something. I overcame that by prioritizing, & I felt that I was better off leaving my current job. My last day was sometime mid-April. Now I’m able to commit more to Surf Rider. Still working of course, but with a more manageable schedule where I can balance both things, which I’m really happy about. I knew the time was coming, I just needed to decide when that time would be, you know? I wanted to make sure I went out on my own terms. 17. What is your advice to new ocean conservationists, aspiring ocean professionals, & passionate young people looking to make a positive impact on the sea? Be patient, but stay motivated. A lot of the time whatever you’re doing is not going to be accomplished immediately, especially when we’re talking about things related to environmental policy or getting a program started. It’s not going to be a one-&-done fix. It’s going to take some time. While that can be annoying sometimes, & a bit frustrating, you can stick it out. Just stay motivated because what you’re doing will make a difference. What you’re doing will help tons & tons of different people, & the environment. You’ll be doing what you love. Even though it’s going to be tedious, & sometimes stressful, you’re doing it because you love it. 18. Do you have any final words about marine science, the Surf Rider Foundation, the beauty of the sea, or ocean conservation? My final words towards the Surf Rider Foundation are that I appreciate all the work that they’ve done over the past 40+ years. I’m glad to be able to be a part of such an amazing organization that has done so much good. Not just for each community, but for coastlines all across the country. I’m grateful that I can have a part of that by doing what I do as Vice Chair. It genuinely makes my day knowing that I have a good team with me, supporting me, working with me, & having people I can learn & grow from. It means a lot knowing that I have a good support system behind me as well. That encourages me to do this. When it comes to Marine Science, it is debatably the most interesting realm of science with so many different facets, & so many different things to learn. The many unknowns about the ocean that we don’t understand make it more interesting to care about, & protect! Directories / Credits https://chicago.surfrider.org Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast Cash Daniels Tides of Tomorrow The Open Book, Topanga Olivenbaum Music Pitfire Artisan Pizza Our Loyal Patrons P. R. Ochoa

A vibrant photograph of Gerard Loisel with 2 of his students attending one of his marine biology camps. Credit to Gerard Loisel. Recently, we were quite fortunate to sit down with marine biologist & science communicator, Gerard Loisel. Gerard Loisel is a marine biologist & science communicator from Key Biscayne, Florida. He is well known for his marine biology camps for youth, his work in science communication, & his work in marine science. In today’s interview, we sit down with Gerard to discuss his illustrious career, his work in science communication, his work in marine science, & his passion for the sea in a comprehensive 10-question interview. Before delving into today’s interview, please note everything said has been edited for clarity, & that the opinions of our interviewee do not necessarily reflect the opinions & values of our organization. With that being said, let us delve into the contents of the interview! Questions About His Passion: 1. What sparked your passion for the ocean & marine science? When I was a kid, I knew that I wanted to study animals. I wasn’t sure what kind. I would go to zoos, & I was interested in mammals at first. Then I got interested in reptiles around high school age. There’s a place called Miami Serpentarium in South Florida. I went there to see if they would hire me. I wasn’t 18 yet, so the director said come back when you are of age. Then I became interested in fish. I think it started because I had a marine aquarium. A lot of people do freshwater aquariums first, then switch to marine. I didn’t do that. I thought marine fish were interesting, so I joined the Florida Marine Aquarium Society to find out how to keep them alive. It went from there. 2. Generally speaking, what is your favourite marine or terrestrial animal? I would have to go with one of the two fish that’s on my marine biology camp's logo, which is a spotted drum (Eques punctatus). It’s the fish that I studied in college. They are often misidentified as juvenile jack-knifefish. I thought they were interesting-looking. They change pretty drastically as they become adults. When they’re juveniles, they’re hard to identify. I remember when I first went to the Smithsonian, I went to their fish museum. When you get an expert who comes, they can look at the jar & identify the fish without removing it. That’s what they did with me in Washington when I walked in. They’d bring out the juvenile jack-knifefish & spotted drum so I could tell them which one is which. That fish is on my logo. 3. Who Designed The Logo For Your Marine Biology Camps? I did! I have a sense for that kind of thing, I have a knack for it I suppose. For a while I was a disc jockey, you know on weekends I would DJ. I created my own radio commercial, & I remember I went into the studio with a very famous Disc Jockey who did The Voice. He asked me “What marketing company did your commercial?”, & I go “I did!” If you’re passionate about something, nobody is going to be better at promoting it than you are. You’re probably going to put more time into it. I designed the logo, & I drew the spotted drum. I also put together my own radio commercials when I had my Disc Jockey Business. It was a weird kind of thing. I’m at the University of Miami studying marine biology, & I was an undergraduate. I was in a fraternity, & we had some great parties. It seemed like the oldies parties were the best, with 50s & 60s music. I kind of fell in love with music, & decided to form a company that only did that. This was only after I’d hosted a charity event on campus to help fight multiple sclerosis, it was a 45-hour dance marathon. I had radio personalities coming in, & I had a radio personality tell me at 3:00 in the morning, “I gotta leave, I gotta be on the air at six”, & I go “No, you can’t leave, I got a dance floor full of people!”, I didn’t know what to do. He tells me that he has to be on the air, & the other disc jockey is nowhere to be found. He offers to show me how to do it, & shows me the mixer, turntables, & headphones. He gave me a very quick lesson on how to become a disc jockey, and, as they say, the rest is history. It was interesting, I was doing a charity event & as a result of something that happened in the middle of the night, a whole new career evolved. What I really enjoyed about that was that I’m doing marine biology Monday through Friday, & on the weekends, I’m playing my favourite songs for people & getting paid to do it. It was pretty cool. If you’re passionate about something, you can always do more than one thing. I’m in a life of earning a living doing more than one thing. I’m a soccer coach, I was a disc jockey, & I did camps. I do multiple things, all of which I enjoy doing. There’s a saying, if you love what you do for a living, you’ll never work a day in your life. I didn’t come up with that, but it’s very true. The logo for Gerard Loisel’s Marine Biology Camp, featuring a Spotted Drum & Seahorse. Credit to Gerard Loisel. Questions About His Career: 4. Where did you attend university for your undergraduate studies, & was there any particular reason for that choice? I’ve met a lot of football players, & other athletes. One football player who was the president (of the Hurricane Club), right before me, said that many athletes when asked why they pick the University of Miami, a lot of football players say “Well, my dream is to someday play in the NFL, so I figure if I go to the University of Miami & play Football, I have a higher chance of going into the NFL.”, because we’re known as the pipeline to the pros. I tell people my situation was similar even though I didn’t play football. I played soccer, but there’s no men’s soccer team at the University of Miami. I wanted to go to university to become a marine biologist, so I ended up going there. It’s kind of interesting, because this was a long time ago, back in the 70s. Students were discouraged from specializing too early. They said “If you’re going to go into marine science, wait until you go into graduate school.” I think there was only one college in the country back in the 70s that offered a bachelor’s degree in marine biology. The way most people did it was that you majored in biology, minored in chemistry, & studied marine science in graduate school. I decided to go ahead & take some (marine science) courses anyway. I graduated in three years, I could have graduated in two & a half years, except my senior year, I took a graduate course in marine science. Looking back now, it’s an interesting path that I took. I got my bachelor’s degree when I was 19, & as a 19-year-old with a bachelor’s degree, I was offered a job to teach high school marine biology at a small private school in Miami by a lady who was like a second mother to me. I heard from a colleague who was tutoring over there, when warned me that she was concerned that I was only 19. He told me to look as old as I could when I went to meet her. How do you look older? I wore a tie, & a dress shirt, & when I walked in the secretary looked at me & said “Well, you really do look 19.”, but we somehow clicked right away. She started taking me around campus & telling everyone I was going to be their marine biology teacher. I got the job! I got a job at 19 teaching high school marine biology. I ended up using that money to help pay for graduate school. When I finished graduate school, I figured I was going to move on because my goal was never to be a teacher. So, I told the principal that now that I was finished with grad school, I’m going to move on. She told me she wanted me to stay. I said “Well, don’t get me wrong, I like teaching, but my dream work is not to be a teacher”, because my dream was to work in a laboratory. She said “If you stay, I’ll build you a laboratory.” Some people think that when I say this I mean she converted a classroom into a laboratory, no. She built one from the ground up. The school was on the water, had a dock on (Choctawhatchee) bay with boats, & she built me a lab. I think everything happens in life for a reason. I’ve had some people say very kind things over the years to me over the years about my ability to communicate. A parent of one of the kids in my camp said to me “How did you end up becoming a teacher?”. When I said that wasn’t the plan, I told her the story I just told you. She said to me there was a divine intervention going on, because apparently that was my real calling. I’m blessed with being able to communicate & explain things to people in a way they can understand. I think that’s what I was destined to do. Years ago, I thought “How does a 19-year-old know enough about marine biology to teach it at any level?”, & the answer is that I deviated from the norm of not taking marine science classes until I got to graduate school. It didn’t even occur to me that the decision I made to take classes as an undergraduate would pay off, because that is why I knew enough marine biology to teach high school marine biology at 19. That all worked out. When the lady who owned that school passed away, I ended up becoming a college professor for 26 years teaching undergraduate marine biology & oceanography, but it all started there as a 19-year-old marine biology teacher. The school had a reunion this past fall, & they were kind enough to invite me to attend. I was amazed at how many stories they remembered. I have a reputation, even now, as being a storyteller. I try to use stories to help people create an image. I have a lot of stories related to marine science, & I use those stories to help people develop a better understanding of whatever the topic is. I remember when my marine biology college class had required field trips, & we went down to the Keys. We went on a glass-bottom boat to go out to see a coral reef. Some of the students weren’t good swimmers, so we chose the glass-bottom boat approach. As we’re about to head out, some of the students who’d already boarded the boat had spoken to the guide. The guide does more than talk about marine life. The guide talks about local restaurants & tourist attractions in the Keys. When I got on the boat she asked if I was the professor, & I go, yeah. She says that the students were telling her how I’m a great storyteller. She asked if I wanted to give the talk, & I said no, you give the talk. She was worried that she didn’t know enough, & I said you’ll be fine. I’m building up her confidence. She says the students told her I’m a great storyteller, & she says that she needs a mangrove story. What? This was a long time ago, when people used a Rolodex. Does she think I have a Rolodex with my stories? I told her, I don’t think I have a mangrove story for you. She did a great job, & when she was done, she came up to me & asked me for my opinion. I told her that she was great, & that she identified a lot of fish correctly, which a lot of times they don’t. 5. What is your specialty within marine science? Well, my specialty is ichthyology. That’s what I study. I keep telling people, especially the media, that there are lots of marine biologists. There’s coral people, there’s shrimp people, there’s whale people, & there’s fish people, I’m a fish guy. As a matter of fact, I did a camp in the Florida Keys. A kid comes up to me, & asks “What if we catch a fish & you don’t know what it is?”, & I said that’s probably not going to happen because I’m a fish guy. I’m that kind of marine biologist, but I listened carefully. In my camp, we do a sea turtle program. I had a gentleman named Bill Ahern who was the sea turtle permit holder for Miami-Dade County for years, & he did my Thursday Sea Turtle program. I always listened to what he said. He’s a turtle expert. I learned a lot from him about sea turtles. I have former students that become experts in different areas. I have a former student who’s a whale expert, whom I’m always ready to rely on if I’m asked a question or if I’m sent a video by the media. If it’s not a fish, then I’m going to give you my opinion & then I’m going to go elsewhere. I remember when the first interview I did for NBC 6 involved a Killer Whale. They needed me for the noon news. I was going to the Florida Keys to look at some field trips for my camps. I pulled into a Hampton Inn, & interviewed in the lobby of the hotel. As I’m pulling in, I call my wife & tell her that they’re going to interview me about this killer whale. She goes “But, you’re not a whale expert?”, & I explain that I told them that, & that they wanted to interview me anyway. I think they liked what I said when I was talking about the interaction between the trainers & the whales. Still, though, I keep reminding them I’m a fish guy. 6. How did you enter the field of marine science, & what was the first research project that you ever worked on? Being a fish, I studied reef drums. One of the first jobs I got other than teaching was a study with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They were doing a study on the impact of beach restoration in reefs close to shore, & they wanted a fish survey. In other words, they wanted to know what fish are there before & after the dredging operation. I got hired because I’m a fish expert, but even better for them I’m a coral reef fish expert. That was a great job. I got paid to go scuba diving & write down what fish I saw. We had a system where you could determine not only what was there, but how abundant they were. The other person who was hired was an open ocean fish expert. He’s a good guy, & he & I were friends. When we got on the boat, we had to have dive buddies. We’d get on the boat, & he’d say “What was that fish?”, because he could narrow it down to one of two things. Because I’m a coral reef fish expert, I could identify them, that’s what I was there for. That was pretty cool. We published a paper on that. Then there was a National Marine Fisheries Service Study on recreational fishing. I was originally hired to interview fishermen, make sure they identify their catch properly, & weigh as well as measure their catch. It was interesting. They quickly promoted me to a regional coordinator. Then, they promoted me to state coordinator, which means they sent me to Jacksonville to train me. They started having me train people, & part of the challenge is that you have to hire people. I would get a lot of marine biologists applying because it’s a cool job. They’re getting paid to go to marinas, & fishing piers to talk to fishermen & look at their catch. Some of the people who applied were people with PhD’s in crabs, they didn’t know a grunt from a snapper, but they wanted the job. I had to make sure that I hired people who knew their fish. I developed a test for them. Years ago, the Miami Sea Aquarium, back when it was open, had this area called the Lost Islands where there were a bunch of fish. I’d walk them through there, point to a fish, & ask them what it was. Some people liked that, some people didn’t. I developed another test for them with flash cards, where I would hold up a fish & have them identify it. If you’re going to do a fishing survey in South Florida, you need to know these 10 fish for sure. If you miss one or two of them, I can help you with that. Part of the reason they hired me to do that is that they were concerned that people were reporting fish not from that area, so they had me look into that. People were misidentifying the fish. Again, I think that my real calling was to be an educator. A photograph of a spotted drum swimming back & forth in front of its shelter in Turks & Caicos. Credit to Charles Angelo. 7. How did you transition to online science communication? I was teaching marine biology to kids at a small school, & I was hit halfway through the course. When COVID hit, everything went into lockdown. So now all of a sudden, I’m not coaching anymore, & I’m not teaching anymore. The principal of the school called me & asked me how I was, I said I was okay. She says “Listen, we can continue to hire you if you can finish the course on Zoom”, & I said what most people my age said in the spring of 2020 “What’s a Zoom?” Within a year, I thought Zoom was the greatest thing since sliced bread. I’m a storyteller, & I have a way of expressing myself. Zoom allows me to do that. Thanks to Zoom, I was now able to teach marine biology to kids all across the country. I taught kids in Washington D.C., Louisiana, & Philadelphia, thanks to Zoom. I don’t do it so much anymore because we’re all pretty much to in-person stuff. 8. How did you come to host “Marine Aquarium World”, for PBS? How many episodes did it run for, & how long was each episode? What was the subject of the series? What did you learn about television? I learned so much about television that I remember. When they put the little tape on the floor, I knew that was my mark. I had to hit my mark without looking down at the floor. I remember I was interviewing somebody about their fish in their tank. They told the person “When Gerard talks to you, just look at Gerard. Don’t look at the tank. Talk about the fish, but look at him, whatever fish you mention we’ll go back & get later on B-Roll.” I had no idea what that meant! It was 13 episodes, each 30 minutes long. It took a year to shoot. We did remotes, they had me go down to the Florida Keys & collect fish. This was PBS, so we’re all volunteering. The cameraman was a volunteer. I guess they paid for the boat & the boat people. I never met this cameraman before, he would later become famous. I think he may have even won an Oscar for The Life of Pi. We’re on the boat, we’re about to go into the water. I said to him that I don’t know what we’re going to see, fish are hard to catch. I don’t know if I’ll catch anything. He says that I should just do what I do, & he’ll be there. It was one of those weird things where there were fish everywhere. All of a sudden, I catch the first fish & I turn, & there’s a camera right there. I didn’t realize he was going to become an award-winning cameraman. So we go back to the studio, because we also shot studio parts. We interspersed the clips from the studio with the clips we shot in the keys. They’re telling me to make sure I say his name over & over again to thank him for his time. His name is ingrained in my brain. Years later, I’m teaching marine biology at a small school, & there are these two boys who are twins. They tell me their last name, & it’s the same last name. It was his kids. He did some amazing stuff. Questions About His Marine Biology Camp & Advice For Aspiring Marine Scientists: 9. I’m sure that you have faced just as many challenges & setbacks as you have leaps forward, what has been the biggest hurdle or challenge that you have faced across your career, & how did you overcome it? You know, I compare it to the movie Forrest Gump, where things happen sometimes along the way. You think this is an obstacle, & all of a sudden something happens that forces you to go into a different direction. I call those Forrest Gump moments, where all of a sudden you come to a crossroads, & you think you’re going to make a decision, but the circumstances decide for you. The best example is the one I gave earlier. I wasn’t going to be a teacher, but the owner of the school wanted me to stay. My favourite movie of all time is The Great Escape, which is a true story about POWS escaping during World War II, & it’s not so much a war movie. It’s a movie about overcoming adversity & figuring things out. They dug three tunnels, figuring you know if the Germans found one of the tunnels, they’d still be in business. So they built three, & that’s exactly why it happened. They did find one tunnel, but they were still able to go through with the escape. I always tell people to try to have multiple revenue streams in life. Have multiple tunnels, so if one of them shuts down, or all of a sudden you have a situation develop, you can fall back on other tunnels. When that principal called me in 2020, & she asked me how I was doing, I asked if she’d ever seen the movie The Great Escape. I explained how I still had one tunnel going on. She goes, well, if you can finish teaching your class on Zoom, you’ll have two tunnels. That was true. I learned about Zoom. Here was a tough situation, difficult for everybody, but I got to turn Zoom into a positive. 10. Do you have any advice for early-career ocean professionals, aspiring marine biologists, & young people with a passion? When I was an undergraduate, I had professors telling me not to study marine biology, because there were so few jobs available in the field. I didn’t listen to them. I didn’t pay attention. I said that this is what I wanted to do. What I always tell people is if you’re really passionate about something, don’t be discouraged by how many other people are going to apply for that job. When that job comes up, just make sure you’re the most qualified person for that job. Who cares how many other applicants there are? If it’s something you’re passionate about, you need to stick with it. I finally got picked for Jury Duty last year, & I had never been picked before. It turns out the judge didn’t know me, the attorneys didn’t know me, but they asked me what I do. During one of the breaks, one of the jurors said to me “So, you’re a marine biologist?”, & I said yeah. She said “Listen, I’m wondering if you can help me, because I’m studying botany. I’m getting my PhD in botany. I’m concerned as to whether I’ll be able to find a job with a degree in botany.” & I’m thinking, boy have I got a speech for you. So I gave her the speech about not worrying. Just be willing to do things that most traditional botanists might not do. Be willing to look into related areas, but if you’re passionate, stick with it. Don’t not do it because you’re concerned that you’re concerned that you’re going to be competing with other people for jobs. Just make sure you’re the best qualified person when you apply, & let the rest take care of itself. She said to me “Wow! Can you come & talk to my class?”, & I said sure. I knew that there were too many of us for the jury. On the last day, I asked if some of us were alternates. They said that yes, two of us were, & that we wouldn’t know until we’re about to go in for deliberation. Sure enough, they dismiss the botany student. Good thing she talked to me yesterday, because I got to encourage her. If you do something you love for a living, you’ll never work a day in your life. I’ve been very lucky that I’ve been able to do so many things that I love. I got to tell you something, when I get out there in the water with those kids, I’m 18 years old again. It’s like the fountain of youth, you know? I enjoy doing it, & I think that people shouldn’t be discouraged. Get your degrees, be the best-qualified person you can. A brilliant photograph of Gerard Loisel hosting a marine biology camp in Florida, USA. Credit to Gerard Loisel. 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Our Volunteer Program Our organization operates a dedicated volunteer program for individuals aspiring to make an impact, possessing a profound appreciation & admiration for marine life, and who enjoy the oceanic environment. We value every one of our volunteers, regardless of whether their commitment is long-term or limited to a single afternoon spent participating in one of our beach cleanups. We kindly request that you complete this form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScTrkkKLvzZRN4iHBhMzsbUyl25CkhYE7WbRh9utDlRIdQ6A/viewformif) you are interested in volunteering with our organization in a long-term capacity. Upon completion, you will receive an email within fourteen business days either accepting you into the organization or politely declining your services. Each new volunteer will receive a complimentary sticker, pin, and nonprofit-branded mug upon joining the organization. The two principal categories of long-term volunteers are Science Communication Volunteers and Social Media Volunteers. Each role, along with its associated responsibilities, is detailed below. Science Communication Volunteers: Science Communication Volunteers take on a variety of responsibilities within the organization. Typically, Science Communication Volunteers will design educational graphics for our social media accounts, as well as our online courses, assist with designing courses, & assist in writing guest articles. The responsibilities are relatively fleshed out, however, they can be tailored to the individual strengths of the Volunteer. These individuals are integral to our educational programs & are imperative to the organization. For this role, we are requesting a time commitment of 3 to 9 hours per week depending on what exactly the Volunteer can do. Social Media Volunteers: Social Media volunteers also take on a variety of roles within our organization. Their primary responsibilities are to maintain our social media accounts, such as our Facebook & Eventbrite page. They work closely with our Science Communication team to design valuable educational graphics. These individuals are integral to promoting our organization, as without their valuable contributions, our organization would not be able to promote our programs, & message. For this role, we are requesting a time commitment of 3 to 7 hours per week, depending on what exactly each Volunteer can do.

Adopt-A-Cleanup Program For individuals and corporations who wish to showcase their environmental values more meaningfully, we offer an Adopt-A-Cleanup program in which willing sponsors can sponsor one of our public cleanups. These sponsors can be individuals or companies with environmental values, looking to make a meaningful impact. Each sponsor in this program will receive; A certificate of gratitude from our organization. Your company's logo, or your name if you are an individual sponsor, on all the cleanup promotionals. A special thanks in any social media posts or articles about the cleanup. Please see this informational document for more information , & don't hesitate to email us at thepersaudfoundation@gmail.com if you are interested in sponsoring a cleanup, or have any questions at all,

The Persaud Foundation is always looking for partnerships with other scientific organizations, student organziations, volunteer groups, nonprofit organizations, & newsletters. To discuss a potential collaboration, please email thepersaudfoundation@gmail.com. Partnerships & Partnership Opportunities The Persaud Foundation is always looking for partnerships with other scientific organizations, student organizations, volunteer groups, & newsletters. These organizations, or groups, assist us in a variety of ways, & support, as well as assist us in our mission to protect the ocean through conservation, education & public involvement. To discuss a potential collaboration, please email us at thepersaudcatalog@gmail.com . A few of our current partner organizations, groups, or podcasts are listed below, & at the end of all of our articles. We also partner with businesses such as restaurants, & bookstores, who are looking to find ways to support the planet.