Please note: We strongly recommend purchasing tickets in advance to guarantee entry, as we do sell out during school vacation week (December 26 – January 5).
PRESS RELEASE
Sharks Unknown: Changing the Face of Shark TV with environmental educator and renowned shark expert Jasmin Graham
Free screening and lecture: Thursday, December 7, 6:30 p.m. in the Simons Theatre
WHAT: The New England Aquarium Lecture Series presents renowned shark scientist and environmental educator Jasmin Graham.
During the event, Graham will screen an episode of her new PBS Terra series, Sharks Unknown with Jasmin Graham, and share how she has moved the shark documentary genre beyond white sharks and white men. Graham’s talk will dive into the vision for the show, the importance of sharks, and the importance of inclusivity in shark research and conservation.
As President and CEO of Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS), Graham helps open doors for more underrepresented minority students to join the exciting field of marine science. She specializes in shark and ray ecology and evaluation and also has a passion for science education and making science accessible to everyone.
WHEN: Thursday, December 7 at 6:30 p.m.
WHERE: In person at the New England Aquarium’s Simons Theatre, 1 Central Wharf, Boston. The lecture will also be livestreamed via Zoom.
HOW: Register here for the free lecture. Advance registration is required. The New England Aquarium Lecture Series is presented free to the public through the generosity of the Lowell Institute.
WHO: Jasmin Graham’s work encompasses the areas of science communication, social justice, outreach, education, and conservation. Her research interests include smalltooth sawfish movement ecology and hammerhead shark phylogeny, and she cares deeply about protecting endangered and vulnerable marine species. She works in collaboration with Havenworth Coastal Conservation to study movements of elasmobranchs in Sarasota Bay.
Graham serves on the Board of Directors as well as the Equity and Diversity Committee for the American Elasmobranch Society. She is project coordinator for the MarSci-LACE project, which is focused on researching and promoting best practices to recruit, support, and retain minority students in marine science. She has been featured on Dive In with Sylva Earle and StarTalk with Neil DeGrasse Tyson, among other podcasts and webinar series. She was an organizer for the 2020 Black in Marine Science Week and is a member of Black Women in Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Science (BWEEMS). Graham was named a 2021 WWF Conservation Leader.
Graham earned a B.S. in Marine Biology and a B.A. in Spanish from the College of Charleston and an MSc. in Biological Science from Florida State University through the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program.
MEDIA CONTACT: Pam Bechtold Snyder, psnyder@neaq.org; 617-686-5068