Ian and Gemma chat about what they have been up to and we hear from a caller on The BiG Scuba Bat Phone. Our guest is Julianne Zielfle. Julianne became a certified diver in 1985 and she is an award-winning speaker, photographer and media professional. She first appeared in dive magazines in the late 1980s when she met Stephen Frink. She worked on Cousteau’s Campaign on Rights of Future Generations in 1994. She co-chaired the Hans Hass Film Festival and was co-creator of the Dive Industry Awards Gala in 2000. She has been helping schools in the South Pacific since 1992 and teaches in her local school district. In 1999, she was recognized by D.A.N. with the Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award.

You can follow Julianne Zielfle on Facebook here.

Find more podcast episodes and information at www.thebigscuba.com and on most social platforms @thebigscuba 

In this exclusive Zoom interview, Jeff Goodman, Scubaverse Editor-at-Large, chats to Jake Davies, Marine Biologist, HSE Professional scuba diver, underwater videographer (using videos and 360 clips for VR) and CAA licensed drone pilot. 

Jake grew up on Pen Llŷn, North Wales and coming from a maritime family meant that from a young age the underwater world and marine life have played a major role in his life. His interest in marine life and the sea led to him studying Marine Biology at Bangor University where he was successful in obtaining a year in industry with the Intertidal & Coastal team at Natural Resources Wales.

​In 2017 Jake was successfully awarded a Sea-Changers Grant to run ‘Dive Into Monitoring: Seagrass’ surveys with SeaSearch North Wales. The surveys aimed to gather updated information on the Seagrass bed in Porthdinllaen with volunteer divers and local dive clubs.

As a media diver, Jake has worked as part of the dive team (Marine Ecosol) filming for BBC Wales Hidden Wales with Will Millard (Lazerbeam Productions & Folk Films).

Footage which Jake has filmed off the Welsh Coast, as well as the Canary Islands, has been featured for a variety of BBC programmes including an episode of Countryfile where he was interviewed about the Seagrass in Porthdinllaen, Wales along with the rest of the Project Seagrass team. He is also a blogger and contributor to Scubaverse @JDScuba, and a co-director of Under Water Wales @dandwrcymru.

​As well as being a HSE Scuba Diver Jake is also employed as the Project Coordinator for Angel Shark Project: Wales. He is also a Project Leader on a Save Our Seas Foundation Project.

​Through sharing underwater videos and photos of amazing and unique wildlife/habitats that are found beneath the waves along the Welsh Coast as well as abroad Jake hopes to inspire people to go beneath the waves and making the underwater world more accessible for all.

Find out more about Jake and his work at: https://jakeddavies1996.wixsite.com/jdscuba

Rather listen to a podcast? Listen to the audio HERE on the new Scubaverse podcast channel at Anchor FM.