Sea Stories is a day focused on exploration, conservation, scuba diving, shipwrecks and marine life. This will be a great opportunity for those who are interested in the ocean to interact. Tickets will NOT be sold at door.
Featuring:
- David Doubilet, FN’01 and Jennifer Hayes, FN’03 – “A Deep Dive Inside The Yellow Border”
- Charlie Fasano, FI’18 – “Tiger Sharks, CITES and The Stalwart of Shark Conservation: a Tribute to Marie Levine”
- Renee Grinnell Capozzola, FN’23 and Ron Watkins – “Close Encounters With the Gentle Giants of French Polynesia”
- Natalie L. Gibb – “The 20-km Flooded Cave Under a Mexican Border Town”
- Dr. Michael Pateman – “Exploring Bahamian Heritage Through the Ocean”
Tickets:
- General Admission: $95. Tickets purchased after October 26: $110
- $50 for children (14 years of age or younger). Limited quantities available.
Attire: Smart Casual
David Doubilet, FN’01 and Jennifer Hayes, FN’03
Mr. Doubilet and Ms. Hayes will submerge us into the ocean through the lens of National Geographic, discussing current assignments while balancing difficult journalist decisions.
Mr. Doubilet is a contributing photographer, author and speaker for National Geographic producing over 79 feature publications. He has spent over 27,000 hours in the sea since he first put his Brownie Hawkeye camera in a rubber anesthesiologist’s bag at the age of 12.
He is the recipient of many esteemed photographic recognitions including: Hans Hass, Ocean Legend, ADEX Lifetime Achievement, The Academy of Achievement, The Lennart Nilsson and The Explorers Club Lowell Thomas Awards.
He is a NOGI Fellow, a member of the Royal Photographic Society, International Diving Hall of Fame and founding member of the International League of Conservation Photographers. Mr. Doubilet is honored to be a Rolex Testimonee since 1994.
Contributing photographer, author and speaker for National Geographic, Ms. Hayes is a scientist turned storyteller with her passion for the study and conservation of sharks and sturgeons leading to graduate degrees in zoology and marine biology.
Ms. Hayes is the Principal Photographer for Ocean Geographic Elysium Expedition collaborations to Antarctica, Arctic and Coral Triangle; a trustee of the Shark Research Institute and recipient of the Hans Hass and ADEX Ocean Hero Award and SUNY Presidents Medal for Natural History.
Her work has been featured on NPR, CNN, ITN, Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, National Geographic TV, Wild and Disney Channel.
Charlie Fasano, FI’18
Mr. Fasano holds degrees in Marine Biology and Marine Technology and served as Shark Research Institute’s Hawaii Regional Director and CITES Representative until the passing of its Executive Director, Ms. Marie Levine, FN’90.
His field work entailed tiger shark photogrammetry and an identification catalogue. Mr. Fasano’s legislative successes are in regulating the international shark fin trade in Asia and the Americas.
Mr. Fasano was one of the first to film high-definition footage in Hawaii, producing the award-winning film, “Hawaii’s Undersea Ohana.” World-renowned marine artist and SRI Advisor, Wyland, appointed him Executive Director of the distinguished Ocean Artists Society.
Mr. Fasano contributed marine conservation articles to various publications and shared his expertise on conservation and cinematography at numerous Asian conservation and dive forums.
Renee Grinnell Capozzola, FN’23
Ms. Grinnell Capozzola is a conservation-minded underwater photographer and photojournalist who believes powerful imagery can highlight the beauty of nature while calling attention to our deteriorating seas. Her work is a combination of artistic talent honed through oil painting during her youth and a professional background in biology.
She has been widely recognized for her work, winning over sixty international accolades. These prestigious awards include “Underwater Photographer of the Year” from UPY and Blancpain’s “Female Fifty Fathoms Award.” Her work has also appeared in National Geographic, CNN, USA Today, the BBC and France 2. She is an Ocean Geographic Master Photographer and an Ambassador of SEACAM. When she is not in the water, Ms. Grinnell Capozzola enjoys educating others about the importance of preserving marine ecosystems.
Ron Watkins
Mr. Watkins is a photographer, writer and photography instructor specializing in underwater and topside nature photography; raising awareness of the beauty of our oceans and challenges facing its fragile ecosystems.
Mr. Watkins has been an award-winning photographer for over 20 years. Most recently winning awards in the prestigious Nature’s Best Awards, Underwater Photographer of the Year, Ocean Photographer of the Year, Our World Underwater, World Shootout, Ocean Art, and The Digital Shootout. His imagery and stories have been featured in numerous publications including Oceanographic, Alert Diver, Ocean Geographic, Scuba Diving, Scuba Diver Ocean Planet and Unterwasser.
Natalie L. Gibb
Ms. Gibb will share her explorations for nearly a decade, in the Sistema Pandora, a flooded cave system in southern Mexico filled with microbial goo and hydrogen sulfide. These efforts resulted in over 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) of surveyed passageways.
Ms. Gibb’s passion in life is underwater cave exploration and conservation. With her exploration partner, Mr. Vincent Rouquette-Cathala, she has led her team to discover over 20 previously unknown cave systems in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, mapping more than 90 kilometres (56 miles) of cave passageways.
She is a public speaker, author, photographer and videographer and a member of the Woman Diver’s Hall of Fame, where she serves on the board of trustees. Ms. Gibb is co-owner of Under the Jungle, a cave diver training center in Mexico and is a TDI Cave Instructor and Instructor Trainer.
Dr. Michael Pateman
Archaeologist, cave diver, and museum curator Dr. Pateman traces The Bahamas’ history underwater, from blue-hole cave systems and shipwrecks to slave-voyage routes; bridging land and sea to uncover the history of The Bahamas and the wider African Diaspora.
Dr. Pateman is the Curator of the Bahamas Maritime Museum and Ambassador-at-Large for History, Culture, and Museology for The Bahamas which he integrates into his broader vision of cultural preservation and storytelling.
