#3 - ATBS - OCEARCH Oh Yeah! - With Chris Fischer

In this episode we sit down with Chris Fischer and talk about how he built OCEARCH from the ground up. Chris talks about building a environmentally and economically sustainable business built on social media to tracking sharks and facilitating scientific research. OCEARCH aims to aid in the fight to save our oceans and make sure our future generations can enjoy a simple fish sandwich. OCEARCH is a data-centric organization built too help scientists collect previously unattainable data in the ocean. Their Mission is to Accelerate The Ocean’s Return to Balance and abundance, through fearless innovations in scientific research, education, outreach, and policy using unique collaborations of individuals and organizations in the U.S. and abroad. Starting in 2005 scientists helped turn Chris’s focus to the White Shark, the apex predator. The scientists identify data deficit and time as the biggest challenges facing the ocean. Chris purchases The Mother Ship, and they set out on their first voyage to catch a shark. Upon catching their first shark the scientist attaches a single tracker, lets it go, and Chris realises he forgot his Dad’s advice. “Always be in the biggest room in the world. The room for improvement.” After this realization Chris immediately identifies that he needs way more scientists on board and he must pour the world’s oceans into people’s living rooms for this movement to gain traction. The next shark they tagged was off the coast of Massachusetts, Mary Lee named after Chris’s Mother. Mary Lee (4000 lb, 18ft) swam down the East Coast and lit the place up. The news story went viral in every county, city, and state that she passed through giving OCEARCH a leg up in the public consciousness. OCEARCH is pursuing the democratization of the ocean research funding model. Share the data, give it away! This is the only way to combat the data deficit and time constraints plaguing many researchers around the world. Expose people to science, turn fear into fascination, be inclusive. They provide dynamic data sets and curriculum available to educators to keep students engaged while also spreading their message. The OCEARCH STEM curriculum is available in 250 languages, free and online. The future? By the people, for the people... “Anything’s possible if you do not care who gets the credit” - Chris Fischer Also check out: Ocearch.org www.costadelmar.com www.yeti.com #ocearch #Costa #Yeti #chrisfischer