Species Unite19 Aug 2021

Jamal Galves: Manatee Man

"It made me feel like I wished that I had some sort of a super power, so that I could just picked them up and take them somewhere safe. But unfortunately, I'm not strong enough to have done that. So what I did was decide, at 11 years old, that I was going to commit my life to safeguarding the species… that I'll do everything in my power." – Jamal Galves

Jamal Galves grew up in a small village in Belize that's famous for its Manatee population. When he was 11 years old, he saw a research boat near his home and got curious. He asked the scientists if he could tag along on their expedition, and for some reason they said yes. And, they let him come back the next day and again and again for next five years, until finally, when he was 16, they gave him a job.

Now, 20 years later, he is the program coordinator for the Belize Manatee Conservation Program at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute.

Jamal sees it as his life's mission to protect and save these gentle giants. Antillean manatees are a vulnerable species and their population is dwindling. They face numerous threats, from habitat loss, hunting, boat collisions, fishing gear, and natural disasters. Jamal's work provides science and education to conserve them and provides the data for establishing sanctuaries, reducing watercraft speed limits, and fighting poaching.

Jamal made a promise to the manatees when he was a little kid and not a day has passed since that he hasn't lived up to it.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(280)

Ana Paula Tavares: Save the Chimps

"As I stood about six feet away from him, looking at his beautiful little brown eyes, and Tuffy looked right back into my eyes and actually through my soul. And at that moment, I felt like it was quit...

26 Aug 52min

Michael Schneider: Pilots to the Rescue

"We do own and operate aircraft, but we also put a lot of energy into telling the story and that's really important because that's what's going to provide transformation in this space, because people ...

22 Jul 33min

Kevin Sherwin: How do you Milk an Almond?

"His argument against almond milk is that you can't call almond milk milk because you can't physically milk an almond." – Kevin Sherwin Kevin Sherwin is a composer, musician, and filmmaker who decide...

8 Jul 21min

Jamie Logan and Justina Adorno: Green Goddesses Take New York

"We had to start asking how are we sustainable with the activism in the long run? I think that using humor, using confrontation will get people to look at the things that they normally wouldn't." - Ja...

17 Jun 50min

Cameron Meyer Shorb: Nature Was Never Eden

"So before I encountered these ideas, whenever I thought about human's relationship to animals, I only thought about the negative parts. I thought the best we could ever achieve would be to maybe eras...

21 Apr 38min

Dr. Melanie Joy: Why good people don't want to know

"Let's say that you eat meat and you're sitting down and you're biting into a juicy hamburger, and your dining companion turns to you and says, 'Elizabeth, you know that hamburger is actually not made...

1 Apr 51min

Rose Patterson: What are we willing to risk when we know suffering is happening?

"I think something that I learned from doing that was that this is all in our heads, like it's all for show just because there's a security guard that even if he's right in front of you, it doesn't me...

10 Mar 36min

Todd Friedman: The Pig Who Changed Everything

"You want people to stop eating these animals and the only way to do it is to showcase them in a light where people see them as individuals, and not just a sandwich in the morning, or breakfast, or a ...

11 Feb 44min