RET TALBOT CONFIRMED FOR APRIL MEETING!!

[Fishnut]

Ret Talbot, who was one of the speakers for our Earth Day event will now be joining us for our regular meeting time and place on April 23rd 2012.

Subject:

"This is a story I have been researching for CORAL Magazine for the past two years, and my presentation is constantly changing as the story changes. My talk also covers emerging and established marine aquarium fisheries across the Pacific in places like Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, etc. People generally enjoy the slides from my travels researching the trade, diving with local fisherman and understanding the socioeconomic impacts of the marine aquarium hobby on developing island nations. Beyond the slides, I share the science and back story so that people can begin to "think big picture" about the hobby and what we really mean when we say we are committed to sustainability. By the end of the talk, everyone in the audience should have some hands-on practical tools for how they can use their purchasing power to support a sustainable and robust marine aquarium trade."

Ret's Bio

Ret Talbot is an award-winning writer and photojournalist with nearly 20 years of experience covering stories from some of the more remote corners of the globe. From the icy summits of the Andes to the reefs of Papua New Guinea, his assignments have taken him off the beaten track and put his readers face-to-face with stories of adventure, new ideas and innovative approaches to commonplace issues.

A graduate of the prestigious writing programs at both Wheaton College and the University of St. Andrews, Talbot launched his career balancing work as a mountaineering and fly-fishing guide, freelance writer and English teacher. His articles appeared in publications such as Outdoor Sports, Rock & Ice, Fly Fisherman, Shallow Water Angler, and American Whitewater. While not in a river, on a glacier or at the head of a classroom, Talbot traveled extensively lecturing on his own expeditions to places like North Africa, Alaska, Norway, Ecuador, and Peru.

Since 2007, Talbot has worked as a fulltime freelance writer and photographer, penning stories for magazines and working on book-length projects. His most recent work has focused on marine ecosystems and the myriad interactions between humans and those ecosystems. From the artisanal fisheries of Pacific Islanders to the heavily politicized commercial fisheries of Hawaii, Talbot has spent much of the last year interviewing fishermen, politicians, scientists, environmentalists, and other fisheries stakeholders about the concept of sustainability.

Talbot frequently reports on the marine aquarium trade, and his articles can be found in a variety of trade publications. His aquarium-related books include The Complete Idiot's Guide to Saltwater Aquariums (September 2009) and Coral (forthcoming). He is a senior editor at Coral Magazine, where he is currently working on a multi-year series of articles focused on sustainability and marine aquarium fisheries. Reporting from places as disparate as remote island nations across the Indo-Pacific and the massive import and wholesale facilities at Los Angeles International Airport, Talbot's series of articles in Coral have established the marine aquarium fishery as a microcosm for the complexities of international trade, socio-economic development and environmental conservation.

Ret and his wife Karen, an artist known for her scientific illustrations of fishes, split their time between Laguna Beach, California and Jackson Hole, Wyoming.


There will be a dinner with Ret and his wife at Swiss Challet on Kirkwood/Carling starting at 5pm.  If you plan on attending the dinner, please PM me your RSVP.  I'll need to make reservations.

[bt]

Alright, I gotta make sure my schedule is clear for this one.

[ajm1961]

Yoo hoo!
Great stuff Sylvia - this should be a great event!
Looking forward to it!

[washefuzzy]

Looking forward to hearing him.

[Hookup]

what is he talking about?  his bio is so diverse...

[Fishnut]

Since this was originally going to be part of the Earth Day event, he planned on doing a talk about sustainable marine aquarium trade and ways consumers can contribute via their shopping/keeping practices.

You're right, his bio is very diverse!  Since this will be a regular meeting and he'll be staying the night in Ottawa, I'm sure there will be ample opportunity to talk to him about anything else you want .

[redbelly]

Great guest speaker for OVAS!!

I just got back from the Marine Aquarium Expo in LA and Ret Talbot gave a lecture there.

Not sure if the lecture is the same but it does sound similar and here was the lecture description.

Unfortunately I did not get to see the lecture as we were very busy in our booth, but hopefully we can make the trip to Ottawa to see him.



This talk lifts the veil and gives the aquarist a glimpse into what goes into bringing a sustainably-collected fish, coral or other invertebrate from the ocean to the home aquarium. Based on Talbot's travels across the Pacific reporting on marine aquarium fisheries for CORAL Magazine, this talk looks at the environmental and socio-economic impacts of the marine aquarium trade on developing island nations and gives aquarists interested in using their purchasing power to support sustainability some hands-on tools they can start using right away. The talk is also a primer on the state of the marine aquarium trade within the context of legislation and litigation intent on closing marine aquarium fisheries and even the hobby in the United States. While this talk addresses some important issues head-on, it is not short on beautiful images and compelling stories about the animals marine aquarists love and how they reach aquaria around the world from some very remote corners of the globe.

[Fishnut]

Kind-of but not quite what I got.  I edited my original post to include the over-view he gave me.  I think he changes some aspects of it depending on who he's speaking to.

Regardless, it's going to be a great talk so please come out for the meeting!!

[Fishnut]

Just in case anyone was wondering, this is our regular meeting and all of our regular meetings are FREE.

If anyone is on the fence about coming out, think about this...

How often do you get a chance to meet someone of Ret's caliber in your city at your aquarium club

FOR FREE?

I'm not even a salty and I'm excited!!

[Hookup]

Kind-of but not quite what I got.  I edited my original post to include the over-view he gave me.  I think he changes some aspects of it depending on who he's speaking to.

Regardless, it's going to be a great talk so please come out for the meeting!!

Ahhhh.  That helps and goes well with earth day too!!!


I will have to make this show happen somehow.  Though no idea how ima going to pull this schedule/time off.   But cool.

And thank you as first a member of te club and as a saltie second.  This is another example of hard work and dedication that you constantly display.

[Fishnut]

ONE MORE SLEEP!!

Don't forget to PM me if you want to go to the dinner before the meeting.  We'll be at the Swiss Challet on Carling/Kirkwood until 6:30pm so if you want to go and can't make it for 5, don't worry!!

[freshfishies]

This was such an amazing speaker! Kudos Sylvia for bringing Ret to our club! It's a shame that not more members showed up though, they missed a great talk (and I'm not even a salty yet!) I found a lot of what he was saying could be transferred into fw as well.
Again..amazing! Thank you so much!

[charlie]

This was such an amazing speaker! Kudos Sylvia for bringing Ret to our club! It's a shame that not more members showed up though, they missed a great talk (and I'm not even a salty yet!) I found a lot of what he was saying could be transferred into fw as well.
Again..amazing! Thank you so much!

X2
Thanks to Ret & OVAS for such a great informative presentation, it`s unfortunate that the targeted audience was not in attendance to hear the message Ret delivered,Kudos to handful that took the time to be informed, i`m sure we all learned from Ret.
Thanks Sylvie.
Errol
P.S. Sorry i could not make the supper, but i must proclaim my disappointment in hearing not one member took the opportunity to meet Ret & have supper with our guest speaker.

[groupie02]

Thanks for getting Ret to come visit our club.  It was one of the best presentations that I've seen in quite a while.  Too bad there weren't more than a handful of salties around.  Your loss folks... it was really good. 

I know that Sylvia has worked on getting Ret to come speak at OVAS for a long time and that she was talking to Ret before he was approached by MAST (he visited MAST this weekend).  Maybe our club should work with the folks at MAST  to see if we can coordinate trips for other great speakers like Ret.  Everyone wins!

Cheers
Pierre

[Nerine]

I had something come up at the last minute and was unable to attend (( my plan was to be in town early to make the supper!! so sorry to have missed it!!   

I'm shocked that nobody wanted to go to the supper.... o_O

[fischkopp]

It was an interesting presentation; I sure have learned a lot from it. I was aware of the sustainable fishing concept from South America and was pleased to see that it found its way into the marine side of the hobby as well.

Kudos to our Program Chair!

[Rybren]

Ret's presentation was phenomenal.  He is a very dynamic and enaging speaker.  I had a chance to speak with him both before and after the presentation,  he's a very nice guy.

I must admit that I was embarassed by the poor turnout.  I had expected the room to be packed to the gills; instead, you could swing a dead fish and not hit anyone.

Not cool. 

Thanks Sylvie.  You did your best.

[Hookup]

I'm also surprised at the low turn out.  Maybe, like me, the Monday night time slot no longer works for people.  There was a poll a while back about which nights and iirc it showed a wide spread of requested nights...  Wasn't conclusive, but maybe something to revisit.

[charlie]

A couple of pics.

[charlie]

A few more