2022 daytime speakers

After a spectacular trip to one of the world’s best wreck diving destinations - Bikini Atoll, Super Typhoon Mawar left an already travel-weary group of divers stranded for ten days on one of the most densely populated and least visited places on earth. Ebeye Island, with no tourism infrastructure and little infrastructure in general, offered more than we could have imagined in the way of lessons we’ll all carry with us on future remote travel.    

              Raised on wreck diving and photography Becca Boring has been the Operations Manager of Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo for the last decade. She is passionate about documenting and helping others capture the beauty of the underwater world and has a particular fondness for the wrecks of the Pacific.

Will humans undo that which nature has taken 400 million years to perfect? Based on his highly rated TEDx Talk, this film by Paul Cater Deaton outlines many of the dire threats facing shark populations, including overfishing, pollution, and finning. We learn about some of the many people and entities taking the lead in shark conservation, the benefits of preserving the majestic beasts, and why "The Only Good Shark" is a live one.

Paul Cater Deaton is an award-winning Writer, Producer, Director and Cinematographer who has shot on six continents for film, TV, music video, magazine and documentary projects. Credits include The Travel Channel, NatGeo Wild, The Discovery Channel, HBO Documentaries and The Amazing Race. He is a member of the Television Academy, The Explorers Club, Boston Sea Rovers, Historical Diving Society, and Rotary Club. Paul has been a SCUBA diver for over 30 years. He is certified in Global Shark Biology, Biodiversity and Conservation by Cornell University and the University of Queensland, Australia.

            David Charash is Dive Medicine Physician Board Certified in Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine, and Emergency Medicine.  He has been a hyperbaric physician for 30 years.  He is a DAN Referral Physician, DAN Instructor and founder of Dive Medicine and Hyperbaric Consultants.  As a consultant he works with the diving industry, divers, and  medical facilities on  all aspects of Dive Medicine, Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care related issues. He is also producer of the Podcast Fitness In Diving which can be found on Apple and Spotify

There are many thousands of shipwrecks around the UK, many have already been discovered but taking a  fresh look at sonar scans and venturing deeper has allowed forgotten wrecks to be rediscovered. This includes British warships HMS Jason, HMS Hoste & HMS Negro as well as the USS Jacob Jones.

UK based technical diver and Underwater Photographer Rick Ayrton has been involved in wreck discovery around the British Isles for many years. The past two years have been some of the most rewarding and productive. Rick is an award winning underwater photographer and he enjoys bringing images of long forgotten shipwrecks back into the public eye. In 2021 he published "Expedition Britannic" a book about the 2019 expedition that was well received by both divers and non-divers.

Joe Romeiro has spent nearly two decades filming some of the oceans top predators around the globe and has one of the largest libraries of various species both day and night. Joe will be presenting about some of his latest work with sharks and showing off some never before seen footage.

Joe Romeiro is a multi-award-winning veteran wildlife filmmaker and Executive Director of 333 Productions. He is a member of the Explorers Club and in 2019 the Boston Sea Rovers awarded him the esteemed “Diver of the Year” award. Joe has spent over a decade filming and interacting with sharks all over the world. He has worked with many top celebrities and holds producer and filmmaking credits for Discovery Channel, National Geographic, BBC, Animal Planet and many more. His mission is to showcase sharks as beautiful creatures that are critical elements to our oceans ecosystem through personal interaction, education, research and filmmaking.He has worked with many respected scientists in the field to bring to light some of the world's first knowns about shark behavior and activities that astound audiences worldwide. Joe and his wife, Lauren, own a 45' research vessel located in Rhode Island, the R/V WARFISH, and has co-authored many scientific papers on shark behavior, movement, ecology and biology. His work focuses on his local New England waters, fighting for the survival of native species with an emphasis on the mako, blue, porbeagle and great white shark. His work has fueled awareness and legislation to protect these species not just regionally, but worldwide.

               Marine animal entanglement is a leading cause of mortality in large whales. This presentation will be covering an overall explanation of the entanglement problem, history of conformation of the Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network (ALWDN). We will be sharing some of our latest disentanglement efforts and showing the public how to identify and report an entangled animal.

            Paulette Durazo is originally from Mexico. She has a Master’s degree in Oceanography with 10 years of experience working with marine mammals. Paulette spent much of this time in Baja California Peninsula, Mexico working on research projects ranging from the feeding ecology of harbor seals to population studies of gray whales. She also engaged the public while working as a naturalist in Cabo San Lucas and the San Ignacio Lagoon. Paulette joined the Center for Coastal Studies in 2019 working as research assistant with the Humpback Whale Studies Program and as a rescue assistant for the Marine Animal Entanglement Response team.

Shoreline Diving Services  has identified the remains of Defender, an experimental submarine designed and built by eccentricmillionaire and inventor Simon Lake. Lake designed and built Defender for military usein 1907, making one of the earliest examples of an American-made submarine. A team assembled by Richard Simon, vice president of Shoreline Diving Services, researched the vessel’s final resting place and dived and identified Defender’s remains on April 16,2023, more than seventy-five years after her sinking.Lake’s work was inspired by Jules Verne’s classic novel “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea” and his designs often reflected scenes from the book. He builthis first vessel, Argonaut, in 1897, and it became the first submarine to operateextensively in the open sea. He built Defender for the United States Navy in 1907, but a competitor beat him out for the contract he sought. Lake spent years adapting andrefitting Defender for everything from underwater rescue missions to arctic expeditionsto salvaging gold from wrecked ships but, unlike his other submarines, never found abuyer for Defender. The vessel languished at the docks in New London, Connecticut and later beached on the mud flats at Old Saybrook. Defender was scuttled by the Army Corpof Engineers in 1946. Lake went on to build other submarines and secured more than 200patents for his inventions, including ones for periscopes, ballast tanks, and diver compartments. 

Richard M. Simon grew up diving and crewing on New England dive boats. Rick is a Boston Sea Rover & Frank Scalli Intern (2005) and  a TDI dive instructor holding both recreational and technical ratings. Rick is also the president of Manta Industries- a dive equipment manufacturing company; and is the vice president of Shoreline Diving Services, INC.- a commercial diving company specializing in inspection, salvage and construction. Rick is an avid diver; especially enjoying cave and wreck diving mostly on the East Coast but really anywhere around the world. When he is not diving he enjoys spending time on his with- with his wife Erin and their many farm animals.

              Isla Mujeres, Mexico, just northeast of Cancun is the home of one of the biggest shark fishing communities in the Yucatan peninsula.
Every year an average of 18,000 sharks of 24 species are caught for the fishing industry. This practice has existed more than 60 years and some of the families involved have been devoted to this activity for over three generations. Saving our Sharks Foundation is supporting a local strategy to provide these fishermen with the opportunity to find alternative ways to support themselves and their families while giving thousands of sharks the opportunity to live and thrive.                             

            Executive Director Todd Essick brings a lifetime experience to the Saving Our Sharks Foundation. He has a long record of volunteerism and conservation; he has been a scuba diver for more than four decades working as a photojournalist and a fine arts photographer. Beginning as a photo journalist, eventually transitioning to the underwater realm to create an underwater fine art project showing the "connection we all have with the sea", resulting in his book Goddesses Sirens and Mermaids. This project lead to several awards and honors, including being named one of the top 10 underwater photographers in the world. His travels inspired him to photograph and write about nature, including the worlds first shark sanctuary in Palau. After hearing of a proposed project in Isla Mujeres to stop the shark fisherman from catching and killing sharks, he helped establish a 501(c) 3 public charity that could fund shark conservation projects including the Isla Mujeres shark initiative.

              Think of all the time, expense, and emotions you have invested in your photography. Yet, disaster is always waiting at the edges: a camera flood, corrupted images, or stolen gear. The simplicity of "My images are "backed up" or are "in the cloud" provides a false sense of security.  This presentation will review disaster prevention and recovery strategies, tools and techniques to minimize the risk of losing your hard-won images and what to do should the inevitable disaster happen. Perhaps not the most thrilling topic, but a critical one that is analogous to eating our vegetables as a child. We knew it was good for us, but it wasn’t our favorite thing to do. This session will make the steps and actions necessary to protect our valuable images a bit more palatable. AWC : 168 132

            Tom is a juried, award-winning fine art landscape and underwater photographer. For over 30 years, he has been both a fine art photographer and scuba instructor. Tom conducts photography workshops and classes and his work has been exhibited throughout New England in galleries, and other venues, and printed in globally journals and magazines.  He is a juried Exhibiting Artist Member of the prestigious Rockport Art Association & Museum and the Needham Art Association. When he is not out playing with his two dogs, you will find him road-tripping and diving to find that one perfect image…which still eludes him.
 

Plastic is everywhere... even in the paradise of Hawaii’s most remote and isolated Islands. It is adversely impacting birds and wildlife in one of the most distant places on earth, Midway Atoll, in the north central Pacific. Join Schoolyard Films and “the Wild Kids” on a journey to this incredible place to understand the impacts of plastic pollution and to try and educate everyone to "Turn off the tap!" And, meet the world's oldest banded wild bird, "Wisdom"... who may have life lessons to share with all of us.

              Amy Giannotti is a marine ecologist and proudly represents Schoolyard Films as their Director of Development. Amy’s love of the sea spans generations, as her great-great grandfather was a prominent captain of sailing ships from Cape Cod during the 1800s. Amy has a B.S. in biology from Marietta College and a M.S. in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia. She has extensive experience in freshwater and marine environments, including underwater caves and problems with invasive species.

    Diving combined with lab experiments has recently produced some exceptional discoveries of octopus behaviors. Join our adventures worldwide to witness octopuses sleeping and dreaming with colorful skin patterns, octopuses on the Great Barrier Reef conducting elaborate courtship displays, blue-ringed octopuses demonstrating social recognition via chemical sensing through their suckers, and some exciting brain and nervous system discoveries that are reshaping our understanding and appreciation of the elegance and adaptability of these strange animals.

              Roger Hanlon is a diving biologist who studies rapid adaptive coloration in cephalopods. He has conducted detailed field studies worldwide with the aid of diving citizen scientists and film crews, and has published 250 scientific papers, several dozen of which involve two dozen octopus species worldwide. He is a Senior Scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole and was trained at Florida State University, the University of Miami, and Cambridge University. Active public outreach includes TED 2019, BBC, NOVA, Discovery, National Geographic, TEDx 2015, New York Times, and others.

              This program provides an overview of the natural history of the white shark in the northwest Atlantic, and how that history coincides with the origin and work of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy (AWSC). This program will touch on the public perception of white sharks and their role in our marine ecosystem. The ongoing white shark research taking place off Cape Cod is explained, as well as how that research is connected to public safety and white shark conservation.                                          

 Kristen Kibblehouse works as the Community Engagement Manager for the AWSC. She has been involved in education, outreach, and research related to the white shark work being conducted off Cape Cod since 2016.

                  During 2019 and 2020 researchers collected hours of video and still images from the steamship Portland in an effort to create the most detailed 3-D representation of the shipwreck. This talk is a behind the scenes look at how the data was collected the many challenges it presented both in the field and ultimately in processing the data and will be the first time the model is revealed to the general public.

              Evan and Maryann Kovacs own and operate Marine Imaging Technologies, a Pocasset based underwater company that specializes in imaging the underwater world. Together and separately they have surveyed and filmed sites around the planet with all manner of underwater diving and filming platforms. More importantly, they often process the data and create beautiful models and images that are both artistic and instructive in nature.

A key factor for the safety of diving operations is a correct risk assessment. This presentation focuses on identifying, mitigating, and managing risks derived from divers’ actions and interactions with the environment. Most of the diving mishaps originated not from a single step but rather from a chain of interconnected events. Interrupting even one of such events prevents escalating the problems. Good knowledge of the potential environmental hazards is also needed to develop a safe and proficient diving plan. Finally, the components of the diving team should be carefully chosen to create a synergic interaction that enhances the team's efficiency.

Dr. Giorgio Caramanna has more than 25 years of professional diving activity, primarily in high-risk environments (including caves, under the ice, and volcanic areas). He is a certified European Advanced Scientific Diver and American Academy of Underwater Sciences Scientific Diver. He is also a NAUI and DAN Instructor. He is a consultant for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (MA, USA), collaborating with the Diving Program in risk management for diving and scientific diving training. In 2018, he was awarded the “Golden Trident” from the International Academy of Underwater Sciences and Techniques for his contribution to the development of underwater science.

Caribbean Reef sharks readily recognized their own image reflected in the lens port of an underwater camera housing, single sharks making up to 18 passes to look at themselves. Among 3 divers identically suited in maille, they surrounded the one whom they had not previously encountered. These events point toward higher-order cognition including a Theory of Mind and sense of Self, much like us. Sharks come from an ancient lineage, almost as distant from humans in evolutionary terms as insects. Sameness in that context has profound implications for our relationship with life on Earth, which we ignore at our peril.

Mark Seth Lender is a producer for wildlife content and Explorer in Residence at Living on Earth, nationally  broadcast to 250 Public Radio stations. He does his own fieldwork and writes and voices his material on air (2009 – present). He has a monthly byline at Connecticut Examiner (http://ctexaminer.com/) and is an occasional contributor to Estuary Magazine (http://estuarymagazine.com/). He is the author together with his wife Valerie Elaine Pettis of the award winning and much-beloved children’s book, Smeagull the Seagull, A True Story (http://smeagull.com/) The Decisive Sequence, the work-in-progress of his first book of photography is at https://marksethlender.com/the-decisive-sequence/ . Mark was inducted into the Explorers Club in 2015.

              Covid-19 has impacted each and every one of us, and remains difficult to manage in low and middle income communities (LMICs). Early in the pandemic Lombardi teamed up with Subsalve USA to rapidly gain FDA Emergency Use Authorization and bring to market a life saving oxygen treatment hood that had previously not been used extensively outside of Europe. Numerous successful use cases from within the US to as far as Bangladesh, Nigeria, Bolivia, and other areas will be presented, along with future directions for this exciting technology and technique which has its roots in diving - a true gift from the sea!

       Michael is a career diving contractor based in Rhode Island who has amassed more than 5000 working dives in very challenging conditions - ranging from inshore marine construction to deep mesophotic coral reefs. He Co-Chairs the Marine Technology Society's Diving Committee and is widely published in the field. His company design/builds closed circuit rebreathers, CCTV systems, portable habitats, specimen collectors, and recently medical device appurtenances. His work has been funded by the National Geographic Society, and recently featured on Discovery Channel's Shark Week. His favorite undersea creature is the mesophotic clingfish bearing his namesake, Derilissus lombardii, which was collected on a deep reef in the Bahamas and is reposited at the American Museum of Natural History. 

Dr. Kernagis will provide an update on the latest research in diver health and performance.

Dr. Dawn Kernagis is the Director of Scientific Research for DEEP. Her research over the past decade and a half has centered around extreme environmental physiology, health, and performance optimization, funded by agencies including the US Navy, NASA, US Department of Defense, DAN, and the American Heart Association. Dawn has also been a diver since 1993; she was a diver and operations manager of multiple underwater cave and wreck exploration projects. In 2016, she was selected as a crew member of the NASA NEEMO XXI undersea mission. Based on her research and diving background, Dawn has been inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame, selected as a Fellow of the Explorers Club, and is the recipient of the 2018 Undersea Hyperbaric Medical Society's Young Scientist Award.

This is the story of the Ocean liner MN Viminale, sunk during World War II by an American torpedo boat off the coast of Palmi, South Italy. The Ship now lies at 107 m/350 ft of depth.

Andrea Murdock Alpini is a TDI and CMAS technical trimix and advanced wreck-overhead instructor based in Italy. He is fascinated by deep wrecks, historical research, decompression studies, caves, filming and writings. He holds a Master’s degree in Architecture and an MBA in Economics for The Arts. Andrea is also the founder of Phy Diving Equipment. His life revolves around teaching open circuit scuba diving, conducting expeditions, developing gear, and writing essays about his philosophy of wreck and cave diving. He wote the books: "Deep Blue: storie di relitti e luoghi insoliti" (2020), and in "Immersioni Selvagge" (2022). Actually he is working on a new book: "Andrea Doria: Un lembo di patria".

Beneath the Ottawa River in Ontario, Canada, Jill Heinerth has discovered a remarkable community of endangered organisms that have never been documented. Protecting these animals requires understanding and protecting a unique biota including lake sturgeon and other threatened species. Jill will take the audience on a wild ride through over 10 km of submerged passageways.

More people have walked on the moon than visited many of the places Jill Heinerth has explored on Earth. From the most dangerous technical dives deep inside underwater caves to swimming through giant Antarctic icebergs, Heinerth has been the hands and eyes of climatologists, archaeologists, biologists, and engineers worldwide. She was named the first Explorer-in-Residence of The Royal Canadian Geographical Society and inaugural recipient of the Sir Christopher Ondaatje Medal for Exploration. Jill is a Fellow of the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame, Underwater Academy of Arts and Sciences, Women Diver’s Hall of Fame, National Speleological Society, WINGS WorldQuest and the Explorers Club, which recognized her work with the prestigious William Beebe Award for ocean exploration. The Wall Street Journal, Oprah Magazine, and the New York Times have lauded Jill’s best-selling memoir Into the Planet. Dolly Parton selected Jill’s book, The Aquanaut, for her Imagination Library program. Running Cloud Productions of Australia is currently filming a feature documentary that will be released in 2024 and previewed at the Sea Rovers Film Festival.

We think of often think of reptiles as land animals, but what about sea turtles? While we love seeing these animals under water, they are ever under threat from the impact of humans. Many people fear reptiles, especially those they do not understand, like sea snakes and crocodiles, but these animals have much more to fear from humans than we do from them. Learn about the work being done by the Oceanic Society to educate about sea turtles, and other wildlife, as well as the research and public education by the Crocodile Research Coalition to help conserve crocodiles in Belize.

Joy has been doing animal-related education programs for over 20 years, now with The Joys of Nature (thejoysofnature.com). One of her favorite things is to break misconceptions about animals that people fear, such as reptiles. She has worked with a wide range of reptiles in field research, rescue/rehab and live animal education programs. In addition to decades working with crocodilians, snakes and other reptiles in captivity, she has been volunteering with the Crocodile Research Coalition in Belize since 2018. She is also a Naturalist Trip leader for the Oceanic Society educating groups about a wide variety of ocean creatures.

During the past 70 years of the Boston Sea Rovers, there has been an obvious but surprising parallel to the growth and opportunities in dive travel. Delve into the intriguing parallels between the development of transportation and the opportunities for scuba diving around the globe. We'll uncover the expansion of scuba diving destinations, brought to life with stunning images of diverse marine ecosystems.Expert insights and adventurous stories will be shared, illuminating the profound connection between transportation and the exploration of the hidden wonders beneath the waves. Discover how advancements in transportation have unlocked new horizons.

Nancy McGee, an intrepid explorer and filmmaker, leads a life of thrilling adventures and remarkable achievements. She made history as the first female Exosuit pilot and garnered the prestigious Explorers Club Fellowship for her groundbreaking expeditions in uncharted territories. Her documentaries, centered on conservation and education, have left a lasting impact, while her roles as a prominent speaker and emcee further amplify her influence. Besides her stellar career, Nancy made substantial contributions to public education, touching the lives of countless children, and played a pivotal role in launching aerospace education for PreK-12th grade students.

After a ship sinks, it takes on a new life as an ecological habitat. Shipwrecks host colorful and diverse communities of anemones, sponges, crabs, and fish. In 2019-2020, I led an interdisciplinary team investigating three shipwreck sites in SBNMS. Our research showed diverse and abundant communities and highlighted the role that shipwrecks play as "unplanned artificial reefs." Shipwrecks provide large, complex structures that are not mirrored by natural hard-bottom reefs, but they are also vulnerable to entangled fishing nets.                               

Dr. Kirstin Meyer-Kaiser is a marine biologist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Her research focuses on the colonization and connectivity of isolated, island-like habitats, including shipwrecks. She is an avid technical SCUBA diver and has ongoing projects in the Arctic, Gulf of Mexico, and Palau.

Rebreather Forum 4 was an international meeting held in April 2023 to discuss the current state of the art and best future directions for rebreather diving. An important goal was to produce a set of consensus statements generated during the event to reflect current evidence and strongly supported opinion of the presenters and participants on important current issues. The four thematic areas were safety, research, operational issues, and education and training. This presentation will review the 28 statements, considering the relevant background, applications, and implications.

Neal W. Pollock, PhD. holds a Research Chair in Hyperbaric and Diving Medicine and is an Associate Professor in Kinesiology at Université Laval in Québec, Canada. He was previously Research Director at Divers Alert Network (DAN) in Durham, North Carolina. His academic training is in zoology, exercise physiology and environmental physiology. His research interests focus on human health and safety in extreme environments.

              At the end of WWII military goods no longer needed were dumped into the ocean around the Pacific. In the lagoon of Kwajalein Atoll more than 150 perfectly good American Warbirds were dumped and now rest in the sand. Douglass Dauntless, Avengers, Wildcats, PBJs, plus a Corsair and C-46 can be seen across a two square mile area. What was the significance of these places in the Pacific Theater and why were they left behind? Images and stories about the planes.

              Brandi Mueller is a photographer and writer obsessed with diving, traveling and WWII wrecks. In an attempt to dive as much as possible, she’s been a scuba instructor for 18 years and a boat captain for 15. In non-Covid times she captains the M/V Truk Odyssey liveaboard in Chuuk (Truk Lagoon) part of the year travels to other dive locations to freelance on her time off.
Brandi has won several awards and is widely published and has a book called The Airplane Graveyard. She is an Ikelite Ambassador, part of the Ocean Artists Society and a Platinum Pro 5000 recipient.

             Recently back from a historic expedition to Antarctica, where citizen scientists participated in 3 different polar studies, Faith will discuss the potential for citizen scientists to have an impact on scientific research especially in remote areas. As data gatherers, educators, and advocates for conservation and awareness, citizen science has an important role in raising awareness about parts of the world rarely visited and poorly understood. See for yourself!

         Faith has spent her life educating people about diving through her love and enthusiasm for the ocean, she inspires people and instills in them a passion for diving in all its forms. In early 1990’s, she worked with DUI to develop the first women’s drysuits before becoming DUI’s VP of Sales and Marketing for 20 years. She created the DUI DOG Rally and Demo Tour Program which promoted local diving facilities across the US, teaming dive retailers together while divers test dive DUI products. She now is the co-owner of Blue Green Expeditions which guides expeditions to all the oceans on the planet including multiple polar expeditions. Certified in 1979, she has over 6000 dives including 1000 plus technical and polar dives.

Explore the fascinating wreck and history of the Destroyer/Minesweeper USS Emmons. Sunk during the battle of Okinawa in April 1945 with the loss of 60 officers and crewmen, the Emmons remained undiscovered for more than five decades.  Resting in 145 feet of clear, warm, blue water the Emmons is one of the most intact, diveable warships from WWII.

Mike's fascination with maritime history and shipwrecks began after his first wreck dive off the New Jersey coast in 1971. Since then he has explored many shipwrecks in various parts of the world and has participated in numerous projects and expeditions. In 1985 he was part of the seven-man team that recovered the bell from the Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria. From 1989 to 1995 he operated a charter boat off the Virginia coast and discovered a number of wrecks, including the 4-masted steam-schooner Eureka that sank in 1888 carrying a cargo of general merchandise. While living in Europe from 1999 to 2004 he explored wrecks in the English Channel, Scapa Flow, Baltic Sea, Northern Ireland, Norway, and the North Sea - including three expeditions to document the wrecks from the Battle of Jutland. In 2002 Mike organized a team of English and American divers who traveled to Poland to dive the German liner, Wilhelm Gustloff, where more than 9,000 people perished after being torpedoed by a Russian submarine in January 1945, making it the deadliest shipwreck in history. From 2017 to 2022 Mike lived in Okinawa Japan, traveling throughout the Pacific, diving wrecks in Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Truk Lagoon, and Bikini Atoll.   Mike now lives in Florida, retired from work but not diving.

Diving With a Purpose Collective  Approach to Restoring our Ecosystems (DWP CARES) is a citizen science-based initiative that teaches recreational divers the importance of the delicately balanced ecosystem that is the coral reefs and the effect of human impact on that ecosystem.  We train participants to identify and document the indicators of a healthy coral reef through reef monitoring.  Our participants are conducting surveys of reef fish, invertebrates and substrates over 5 years to assess the change in the ecosystem over time. Our program is growing and expanding from south Florida throughout the Caribbean and beyond.  Join us to learn about our efforts.

Chris Kraska is the son of an Irish mother and Polish Father who met and married in Scotland at the height of WWII while father was a seaman in the Polish Navy. As a marine archaeologist, divemaster, and underwater photographer Chris has made hundreds of dives in warm waters as well as on Lake Erie.   As part of his avocational work, Chris has been a member of MAST, the Maritime Archaeological Survey Team, since 2006 and served as the chairman of the board from 2012 until 2018. He has participated in numerous archaeological surveys as as a survey diver, dive safety officer, and project manager.Chris became involved with DWP CARES after meeting its Director while filming a documentary on Lake Michigan in 2019.  Since that time, he has helped shape the organizations educational platform and course structure as part of their education advisory board.Chris has degrees in political science, archaeology, and education.

There’s a jungle off the California coast. It is lush, and green, and filled with a marvelous diversity of life. It is every bit a wilderness, with a complex ecosystem that is both resilient and fragile. And if you were to look at the islands poking their heads above the water about an hour outside of Ventura, you’d be surprised to be using those words. The islands look barren and dry. Hardly the place for thick jungles of plants and trees. But beneath the waves off these coasts lie the magnificent kelp forests, dense groves of mesmerizing plants swaying with the movement of the water and harboring some of the most beguiling temperate marine life to be found anywhere. Join Eco-Photo Explorers as they explore the kelp forests of California’s Channel Islands.

                 Michael Salvarezza and Christopher Weaver have been diving the waters the world since 1978.  They have presented their work numerous times at the Boston Sea Rovers Underwater Clinic, and all of the major dive conferences, and have published more than 200 articles in numerous magazines, including National Geographic Adventure. Their work has been used to support a variety of research and educational programs. Their expeditions have taken them from the Arctic to the Antarctic and many places in between.

This presentation will discuss the thought processes and methods used to design and build a carbon fiber rebreather chassis optimized for minimal size and weight, maximum strength and streamlined balanced performance.

Captain Eric Takakjian a professional mariner has been sailing ships and oceangoing tugboats to various corners of the world since 1978. Eric has conducted extensive historical research on New England shipwrecks. Since 1985 Eric and his friends have conducted expeditions resulting in the location and exploration over 70 previously undiscovered shipwrecks in the waters around New England and outer continental shelf waters An avid shipwreck diver since 1975. Captain Eric has been a fellow of the Explorers Club since 1997, a member of the Board of Directors of The Steamship Historical Society of America, and an associate member of the Boston Sea Rovers.

This talk will explore the art of storytelling in exotic locations through photography. Shayne travels to some of the most remote corners of the world and will take you on a journey of these locations through his own photos and the tools he uses to bring them to life. He will teach you the lessons he has learned through his assignments to bring your photography to the next level. These concepts can be used by smartphone users or with a professional camera and will teach you the way to utilize these devices to capture remarkable photos. Bring your sense of adventure and let's take a journey through the lens.

Shayne began his love for wildlife when his father took him on his first 24-hour bird-a-thon at just three years old. He grew up exploring a variety of ecosystems and began his career in professional photography, photographing in National Parks and doing product photography but wanted to set his sights higher. He is a Certified Photography Instructor with Lindblad/ National Geographic and travels to the most remote places on the planet. When he is not traveling, he still leads Audubon Birding trips to sharing his love of birds with others. Exploring new places allows him to further his knowledge of culture, wildlife, and different ecosystems around the world. He also loves the underwater as well and is an avid diver with his fiancé Amy.

The name Boston Sea Rovers is synonymous with exploration. Since the organization’s inception, some of its members have braved oceans around the world in the name of shipwreck discovery. From Spanish galleons to ocean liners to modern submarines, Sea Rovers have been behind some of the most important underwater discoveries and excavations of all time. Associate Sea Rover Joe Mazraani and Jennifer Sellitti of D/V Tenacious will lead you on a journey through time and highlight these famous shipwrecks and the Rovers who found them.

      Jennifer Sellitti is Marketing Director of Atlantic Wreck Salvage and a crew member aboard the company's vessel, D/V Tenacious.  She manages topside operations during dive expeditions, conducts historical research, and leads the team’s effort to educate the public about the importance of shipwreck discovery and salvage. A criminal defense attorney by trade, she is also a diver and a U.S.C.G. licensed ship captain. 

     Since childhood, Joe Mazraani has been fascinated by the the underwater world. Growing up in Lebanon, Joe spent his summers by the Mediterranean. He immigrated to the U.S. at age 15 and became a certified diver in the mid-90s. Joe quickly took to diving sunken wrecks off the Northeast U.S. coast. Shipwreck exploration is a way of life for Joe. He is president of Atlantic Wreck Salvage and operates the dive vessel Tenacious, which was specifically acquired and outfitted to accomplish several projects, including locating and exploring U-550 and other deep, uncharted wrecks in the North Atlantic. A criminal defense attorney by trade, Joe is also a U.S.C.G. licensed captain.

The shark biologist who quite unexpectedly found himself in the middle of the newest white shark hot spot tells his story and the story of these magnificent creatures. Based on his book Chasing Shadows, written with Ret Talbot, Skomal highlights this remarkable conservation success story, which is loaded with cutting-edge science, drama, and controversy. From the fascinating early days of shark research on the east coast to the consequences of the so-called Jaws effect and the heart-stopping moment when he found himself beneath a 17-foot white shark off Cape Cod, Skomal sets the record straight about this iconic species.

Dr. Gregory Skomal is an accomplished marine biologist, photographer, and author. He has been a senior fisheries biologist with the Massachusetts Marine Fisheries since 1987 and currently heads up the Massachusetts Shark Research Program, where he has been actively involved in research on the life history, ecology, and physiology of sharks. He has written dozens of scientific research papers and his work has been highlighted in several film and television documentaries including programs for National Geographic, Discovery Channel, and PBS.

Diamond Shoals Light Vessel No. 71 was sentinel of the seas at arguably the most treacherous spot to navigation on the US East Coast, Cape Hatteras. On August 6, 1918 U-140, Under Korvettenkapitan Waldemar Kophamel attacked the Collier SS Merak, just off the outer Diamond Shoal. When the U-boat became aware that the nearby Lightship began transmitting wireless messages about the attack, the guns of the submarine turned on the unarmed lightship. Uwe Lovas first located and dived the LV 71 in . The vessel lies in 190 feet of water just to the South of Cape Hatteras. She is nearly intact and visually spectacular.

Marc Corbett, Panda Daniels, and Jay King are founding members of the North Carolina Shipwreck Project. A group dedicated to locating, exploring, researching, and documenting historic shipwrecks along the NC coast. The NC Shipwreck Project is a technical dive team, and extremely close group of friends who work together towards their goals. 

Hailey will present highlights from this summer as the 2022 Boston Sea Rovers Summer Intern.

Hailey is very excited to be the Boston Sea Rovers 2022 Summer Intern! She grew up in York, Maine and is currently a freshman at University of California, Santa Barbara. She hopes to continue on the double major path of aquatic biology and communications! I am a part of the UCSB Scuba and Freedive club and have loved exploring the kelp forests off the west coast.

Hailey started getting into photography in high school, and practiced by taking photos for local businesses in southern Maine. She also completed a year-long research paper exploring the marketing aspect of marine conservation, where she was able to converse with many underwater photographers and learn about their work.

The Great Lakes region boasts a rich maritime history, with numerous shipwrecks resting on the lakebeds, ranging from remote locations to popular dive sites. This presentation delves into the allure of these submerged time capsules, shedding light on the stories of the ships and their fateful voyages. Additionally, we explore how modern divers are employing photometry and video technology to protect these precious wrecks. By documenting and sharing these underwater treasures, we can raise awareness about the importance of their preservation, ensuring that future generations can continue to appreciate the historical significance of these submerged relics.

Greg Such, a distinguished boat captain, seasoned explorer, and dedicated instructor trainer, has dedicated three decades to the dive industry. Greg's passion for underwater exploration has taken him to the far corners of the globe, with a special focus on wreck diving. His expertise extends beyond diving, as he imparts his knowledge to train both divers and instructors. A true advocate for accessibility to remote dive sites, Greg actively collaborates with organizations to ensure divers can access these hidden gems. His commitment to preserving maritime history is evident through his efforts to document these sites for museums, ensuring that the world can share in the wonder of these submerged treasures.

Arguably the most important aspect of powerful photography is the idea behind it. Developing a complex idea that not only conveys what you're photographing, but shows it in a deeper, more intricate way is a challenge that all photographers deal with. More than just the technical aspects of photography you have to understand how you, as an artist relate to your subject and how in turn you relate it to others. Learn from Jake as he discusses the use of a photographic series in development of artistic, photojournalistic, and personal photography. Through this talk you’ll be able to get a better grasp of how to develop ideas around any photographic subject. With specific exercises and examples Jake will set forth a road map of how photographers can come up with ideas to create meaningful imagery.

Jake Stout is a wildlife photographer specializing in natural history photojournalism. A native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, Jake developed his love of nature spending summers in New Hampshire. Jake has been sharpening his photography skills since 2009 and has worked across many genres of the medium.

Jake began his SCUBA journey in 2017 and never looked back. A year later, he was the recipient of the Boston Sea Rover’s internship in which he traveled around the world doing underwater photography with marine scientists, BBC and National Geographic photographers and filmmakers. In 2019 Jake had the honor of presenting his work at the Boston Sea Rovers Film Festival, the longest continually running dive show in the world, and was inducted as a full active roster member in 2020. He is currently developing underwater camera technology in the Red Sea at the Derya Akkaynak COLOR lab.

Join Kayla as she leads team members Jill Heinerth and Charlotte Pilon-McCullough to explore the three-masted schooner, the OLIVER MOWAT, in the waters of Prince Edward County region of eastern Ontario. The OLIVER MOWAT was considered the crown jewel of the Millhaven shipyards when launched in 1873 and her career lasted 48 years, representing the last of the era of wind and sail. Lost in 1921 and re-found in 2004, the wreck was kept secret for its protection. Come discover this amazing wreck with Kayla as part of a 2023 Royal Canadian Geographical Society Flag Expedition!

Kayla Martin represents the upcoming generation of shipwreck divers and since 2014 has shared her passion at conferences across North America. She promotes preserving historic shipwrecks and low-impact diving as the Heritage Ambassador for Save Ontario Shipwrecks and serves on the board of Ontario Marine Heritage Committee.She volunteers as a member of the Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association Dive Team and assists the Great Lakes Shipwreck Preservation Society in creating 3D photogrammetry models.Selected as a 2023 Royal Canadian Geographical Society Expedition Grantee, she is currently leading an expedition to document the Oliver Mowat, an intact Great Lakes schooner. 

The recent devastating declines of shallow-water coral reef communities are expected to increase as oceans continue to warm, leading to more frequent and severe mortality events. Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems (MCEs), located between roughly 30 – 100m depth, are often buffered from several of the local and global impacts affecting shallow-water coral reefs and it has been suggested, therefore, that MCEs may serve as an important refuge for coral species. Yet, MCEs remain underexplored compared to their shallow-water counterparts, in part due to restrictions to accessing deep sites using traditional SCUBA. If MCEs are in fact an important lifeboat for coral survival, it is critical to understand the various processes regulating community composition and ecosystem function. Here, I discuss recent work exploring community composition on Caribbean MCEs and biodiversity on offshore seamounts using closed-circuit rebreathers as a research tool. As we continue to advance diving technologies we can gain a greater understanding of our underwater world and potentially discover resilient habitats.

Dr. Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley received her PhD from Harvard University in 2009 where she studied the evolution of corals across the Caribbean. She subsequently held postdoctoral positions in Florida and Italy, before settling at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences. During her time at BIOS she became heavily involved with studying the invasive lionfish, a project that led her to technical diving as they discovered dense aggregations on deeper reefs. She quickly became fascinated with mesophotic coral reefs and over time transitioned to a closed circuit system. In 2020 she joined the Central Caribbean Marine Institute as the Director of Research where she lead a team focused on documenting biodiversity on deep reefs, understanding community dynamics, and examining the potential of mesophotic reefs as thermal refuges.

Diving With a Purpose Collective Approach to Restoring our Eco-System is a citizen science based coral ecosystem monitoring program that trains recreational scuba divers to document the current condition of the coral ecosystem by identifying key indicator species.

Kramer Wimberley is a board member and lead instructor for Diving With a Purpose, he is the founder of the organizations CARES program.  Kramer has been diving for 37 years and is a Master Scuba Diver Trainer with PADI. Kramer was featured in Samuel Jackson's six part Series 'Enslaved', where they told the stories of the Transatlantic slave trade through the lens of shipwrecks.   He's partnered with NOAA Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary,  Coral Restoration Foundation,  Florida Sea Grant and many others helping to preserve our coral ecosystem.  Kramer spent 29 years in the Fire Service in Newark New Jersey as a Fire Captain,  Executive Officer for their Arson Investigation Unit, Deputy Municipal Emergency Manager and Acting Fire Director.  He attained his Juris Doctor at City University of New York.