Series 2: Living with Sharks: Tourism, Conflict & Coexistence (Watch Now)
Series 2 of the Shark Trust Podcast explores what it really means to live alongside sharks.
As conservation measures begin to support the recovery of some shark populations, more people are also living by, working on and entering the ocean. Through conversations with researchers, conservationists and people directly affected by human–shark interactions, the series examines shark tourism, depredation, beach safety, education and public perception. At its heart is an important question: how can we ensure that conservation success leads to long term coexistence rather than new conflict?
Living with Sharks in The Bahamas
In the latest episode, Paul Cox, CEO at the Shark Trust and Caroline Robertson-Brown, Marketing Manager and Underwater Photographer, revisit the making of the short documentary, “Living with Sharks in The Bahamas”. They discuss how sharks have become an important part of the culture in The Bahamas. With a thriving shark tourism industry including unforgettable encounters with Great Hammerheads in Bimini. And a community that is building on the importance of sharks to their economy and local ecosystems, to the importance of protecting and restoring these ecosystems themselves.
However, they also explore a more complicated picture emerging. On Cat Island, Caroline had conversations with sport fishers who told her that they were losing large amounts of their catch to Oceanic Whitetips. “I had not experienced firsthand this sort of negative side of sharks being in The Bahamas,” Caroline explains. “They were losing, they said, over 75% of their catch to Oceanic Whitetip Sharks.” It is a powerful reminder that introducing protection is not the end of the conservation process. As Paul says: “It’s not just a case of raising a flag and saying, ‘Today we’ve designated a shark sanctuary.’ It’s an ongoing process that has to continue to work with the community.”
Listen to the full episode of the Shark Trust Podcast to discover what The Bahamas can teach us about shark tourism, conservation and coexistence.
And explore the rest of the series to learn about the ways different experts are working to reduce conflicts so that humans and sharks can share the same spaces!
