The Oceania Project: an interview with a volunteer

Q: First of all can you tell me a bit about the Oceania Project?

A: The Oceania Project is a Not-for-profit, research and education organization that has been run by a couple – Trish and Wally Franklin since the early 90’s, I think it began in about 1992. Basically they’re involved in taking people out into Hervey Bay on their vessel the ‘Moon Dancer’ for 6 days at a time to experience the whales and to help out with their research. The age range of the people that go on board the vessel varies a lot. I think the youngest person has been an 8 year old girl and the oldest was a gentleman was in his 70’s. But I’d say that the majority of the passengers are university students like myself that are participating in the expedition for some hands on experience.

The Oceania Project Expedition is an incredible experience – and an opportunity to come into really close contact with the whales. Most of the whales in the Bay have grown up with whale watching boats and they’re not frightened of them at all. I mean I’ve had whales come so close that they were practically rubbing themselves on the boat while we’ve been on board.

Q: What kind of research do they undertake on these expeditions?

A: Well it has changed over the years. It used to focus on photo identification of the whales. When they first started the program, their purpose was simply to observe what whales were in the Bay and to inspire young people to have that experience. Over the years it has developed a much more scientific focus. Trish and Wally are both currently doing their PHD’s through Southern Cross University. Trish is focusing on whale photo identification and individual recognition and Wally’s focus is on the genetics of whales. So now the research that is undertaken on board is channeled to assist both these projects.

Q: When did you first step on board an Oceania Project Expedition?

A: Well I first found out about the Oceania Project through their documentary “Angels at the Sea” that was made in 1994 and this inspired me to join the expedition. I first joined the expedition for a week in 1997 on a boat called ‘Karma.’ I had planned for this trip to coincide with my 18th birthday. I saved the money to join the project and my parents helped me out with the air fares up there. It was my first trip away from home – so it was all I talked about the whole year leading up! I was lucky enough to get on board at the same time as a school group from Byron Bay – and we did a program called “Kids on the Ocean.” We just had an absolutely fantastic time the entire week. I can still say to this day that my time in Hervey Bay – was one of the best weeks of my whole life.

Then in 2002 – I was looking to participate in some volunteer work with whales. I got in touch with Trish and Wally and they offered me a position as expedition assistant on the project for the whole season which is 3 months from August to October – so I was lucky enough to join that. That was a fantastic 3 months – in which I organized the expedition, organized the people that were to come on board and focused on collecting whale skin samples that Wally needed for genetic work.

Q: People say that once you’ve had a close encounter with a while you’re hooked for life. Does this ring true for you?

A: Absolutely! I’ve been hooked on whales since I was 8 years old! My mum says that one day I jut started talking about whales – and I haven’t stopped since. Since my experiences at Hervey I’ve gone on to study an undergraduate degree in Marine and Freshwater Science. I then went on to do my honours which focused on humpback whale acoustics in Antarctica and now I’ve gone on to continue that work for my PHD – but with a slightly different focus, and that’s what I’m doing at the moment.

Q: What’s the purpose of your research on the acoustics of whales? Does it contribute to whale conservation?

A: My research is basically looking at using acoustics as a technique to monitor where whales go – the different areas that they travel through and the behaviours that they are undertaking in those areas. I’m looking at linking the behaviour of the whales in their breeding grounds with their calls, and then being able to use these results to understand whale behaviour in different parts of the world – particularly in places where we are unable to get visual observations.

I suppose my research doesn’t contribute directly to the conservation effort, but I’m hoping that in the long run it will contribute in an indirect way. I think that all information which emerges on these animals is going to help a great deal towards their conservation. I mean I truly believe that we can only protect what we understand, and I think that we need to learn a lot about these animals so that we can convince Governments and other organizations to contribute to their protection.


Q: From your experience would you say that whale research an area in which lots of young people are becoming involved?

A: I’d say that the interest is definitely growing. When I began at Deakin University there was only one student studying whales – and as far as I know she was the first person to go through the university having done specialized study in this area. Now we have a very different situation. Students at our university have undertaken world famous studies of the blue whales off the Coastlines of Victoria and there are several projects currently running that focus on different areas of scientific research on whales and on how to communicate this information to the public. The program really seems to have taken off, so hopefully this will continue and we’ll get more and more people involved.

Q: Do you see a future for yourself in whale research? In what direction do you think that your knowledge in this area and first hand experiences will take you?

A: I’m not exactly sure yet. Although I’ve known for a very long time that I wanted to work with whales I’m still not 100% sure in what capacity I want to do that. But I’m pretty certain that I can see myself doing something like what Trish and Wally do. I love to dabble in research but I really think that the main way to work towards the conservation of whales is to educate the general public. I really feel very strongly about the need to get the message out there. I would like to think that through my work I could at least make people think twice about their actions and to realize that everything we do affects the environment in general – and the marine environment and whales in turn. I’d really like to use my passion for whales to educate the general public – both kids and adults – about protecting the environment and about the interconnectivity of it all. It’s important to just make people think twice about throwing their cigarette butt on the ground, to realize that actions as small as this can accumulate to become a big problem for the marine environment. Don’t get me wrong scientific research makes an essential contribution to the conservation effort. I mean it provides the information base that is needed to make decisions that affect the livelihood of whales, but I think that advocacy is where my future lies.