Michael Hepher comes on the podcast to talk about his time working with a multitude of different species! He began his career working in the UK and moved to Sweden to work at the Kolmarden zoo with hoofstock. He discusses the challenges involved in moving away from home but the incredible positives that diversifying your experience can bring. 

Dr. Erin Frick talks about animal behavior research, especially on topics of communication and applied animal behavior, having primarily worked with marine mammal species. Currently her main collaborators are Clearwater Marine Aquarium and the Amazon River Dolphin Conservation Foundation. She was the first faculty member hired into Eckerd's new Animal Studies major back in fall 2019, and has been building the program ever since!   More info: https://fablab.eckerd.edu/ https://www.eckerd.edu/animal-studies/ https://www.eckerd.edu/news/blog/horseshoe-crab-conference/ https://www.eckerd.edu/news/blog/cohort-animal-studies/ https://www.eckerd.edu/news/blog/eckerd-college-local-aquarium-dolphin-study/ https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/region-pinellas/eckerd-college-students-study-species-of-dolphin-rarely-under-human-care  

Samantha Clinch is a British Actress, radio host, and mindset coach! Samantha began her acting career aged 4 and was an extra in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, as well as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. She later was given the part of Eloise Midgeon and went on to film scenes with Dame Maggie Smith and Daniel Radcliffe. Samantha talks about her outlook on life and approach to manifestation helped her to land the role that changed her life.    Find her here: https://www.instagram.com/samanthaclinch/ https://www.tiktok.com/@samanthaclinch  

Emily Yalowsky is a former marine mammal trainer who worked at Marineland of Canada. Her time spent caring for beluga whales and a very special killer whale named Kiska, spurred her on into going back to school for PR. She hopes to marry the two sides of her career and help zoos and aquariums best present themselves for the future of the industry.  Find Emily here: https://www.instagram.com/fintasticem/?hl=af

Jackson Miller - otherwise known as JackSuperToast - is a content creator with a passion for making people laugh, and for books! Currently working on his first high fantasy novel, Jack has been able to follow his passions for making content and make TikTok his full time job while focusing on his novel.  Follow Jack Here: https://www.tiktok.com/@jacksupertoast?lang=en

Tess McKelliget is one half of the podcast Trainer Talks and Tails, as well as being an animal caregiver at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Brisbane, Australia! Tess talks about how she got into the industry, her time working with koalas and educating the public, and now her passion for working with birds of prey!  Lone Pine: https://lonepinekoalasanctuary.com/ Trainer Talks and Tails Pod: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/trainer-talks-and-tails/id1697300598

Sam Willens is the founder of the micro squad who inspire people to workout to music and vibes that they love! With tailored workouts for all fitness and ability levels - find the fit for you. From Star Wars, to Lord of the Rings, to training like a Valkyrie from ACOTAR - there is something for everyone!  Join Sam and her colleagues here: https://themicrosquad.com/valkyrie-squad

Dr. Malin Lilley is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. She earned her B.A. in Behavioral Neuroscience with a minor in Biology from Colgate University and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Brain and Behavior Science from The University of Southern Mississippi. Her current research projects involve studying the behavioral development of beluga whales, the lateralization of behaviors in marine mammals, and how students’ personal and professional goals are impacted by their social identity https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Malin-Lilley https://www.linkedin.com/in/malinlilley/  

Katie Spada is a registered dietician nutritionist who was a synchronized swimmer for most of her adolescent life! As with many sports, the pressure was strong to “look” a certain way as a synchro swimmer. This drove Katie to engage in some unhealthy eating and exercise habits. Now, her career revolves around helping others feel 'normal' around food and support them with the mental struggles of life after sport.    Learn more: https://spadastrongnutrition.com/

Dr. Ames completed her PhD on vocal development in beluga calves in 2019. From the knowledge gained from this study she was able to identify narwhal calf calls in acoustic records. With experience researching both wild and managed care cetaceans - Dr. Ames sheds some light on how collaborative research can help shed light into the behaviour of some of the ocean's most mysterious animals 

Daniel Alexander (better known as @dalecsander on social media) is a BookTok influencer and one could argue budding comedian. Best known for his ACOTAR in sixty seconds skits, he talks about his love for books, what it is like being a prominent booktokker in a female dominated space, and his desire to see more Jewish authors represented to reflect the Jewish culture and experience in the modern day.  https://www.instagram.com/dalecsander99/          

Daisy Barrett is a British Zookeeper living and working in Australia. Having worked at Australia Zoo where she was head of the 'roving' department, she took her passion for training to new levels by transitioning to work with marine mammals. She recently won Best Training Presentation for her training work with Little Blue Penguins at the Australian Society of Zookeeping conference! She also hosts the podcast Trainer Talks and Tails with her co-host Tess which you can find here: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/trainer-talks-and-tails/id1697300598

Dr. Austin Allen is a comparative physiologist who studies marine mammals in the wild and in human care. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Duke University’s Marine Lab. He is interested in refining technologies and methods by working with trained animals, in order to study the conservation outcomes in wild populations. His research currently focuses on using bio-logging tags and respirometry to study energetics in toothed whales, to quantify the impacts of human disturbance. 

Rachel Hale is a former great ape keeper at Busch Gardens, Tampa. With over a decade of experience in animal care and training, Rachel has worked with many different species, but explains why great apes - and in particular a couple of gorillas - stole her heart. Touching on animal behaviour and communication - she tells us what the animals learned, and perhaps more importantly what they taught her. 

Sister authors Elizabeth and Helen (pen name Elizabeth Helen) give us the details on their series Beasts of the Briar which is taking BookTok by storm! Diving into what it is like to write in tandem with your sister - talking about everything from character arcs, to spicy scenes, they fill us in on their process and how their lives have been changed by BookTok.    Read their books here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Elizabeth-Helen/e/B0BSB4VHRH/ref=zg_bsnr_g_279254_bl_sccl_11/000-0000000-0000000

Megan Golightly is one of the most popular organizing and decluttering influencers in North America. She is best known for weaving her psychology background and interest in neuroscience into her approach. She promotes the importance of mental health and positive change while helping her clients to de-clutter and organize their homes to promote healthier habits.  Find out more: https://www.go-simplified.com/

Nicola and Shannon combined their love for reading and their love for family into one enterprise - opening a romance bookstore in Calgary. With a passion for filling their days with the things they love the most, they speak about what they each bring to the table, and how they made their entrepreneurial dreams a reality!   Want to check them out? https://www.slowburnbooksyyc.ca/  

Camelle Zodrow, a marine mammal trainer with decade of experience and 12yrs at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, opens up about her relationship with Winter the dolphin and the importance of recognizing how difficult it is working with animals who become part of the family. Her insight into current research, rescue practices, and how zoological facilities are helping the plight of wild marine animals is refreshing. Want to help CMA? Click below: https://www.cmaquarium.org/?utm_campaign=Sales-Performance%20Max-1&utm_term&utm_medium=ppc&utm_source=adwords&hsa_acc=6794882672&hsa_tgt&hsa_grp&hsa_src=x&hsa_kw&hsa_mt&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_cam=20012668953&hsa_ver=3&hsa_ad&gclid=Cj0KCQjwnrmlBhDHARIsADJ5b_nPEkIsllE8M0iUzdSPGRFkz4S4nODEnwP_smk-adZ-XxF1zHsoXaoaAjWZEALw_wcB

Stacey McEwan is the author of the best-selling Glacian trilogy and currently lives in Australia. Well known for trying to turn her husband into a fictional man on TikTok - she shares her journey to publishing and how BookTok helped to facilitate that.    Get her books here: https://www.staceymcewanbooks.com/

Andreas Fahlman is a comparative physiologist whose research projects revolve around the central question of how animals function in challenging environments. He was born and raised in Sweden, and moved to Hawaii in 1993 to pursue a BSc in Marine Biology. He completed his PhD in Biology from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada in 2000.  His graduate and post-graduate studies ranged from ultra-deep diving physiology; novel methods for reducing the risk of decompression sickness; genetic regulation of respiratory and cardiovascular responses to diving and hypoxia in marine mammals and birds; and molecular and metabolic biochemistry in hibernating mammals. He has devised and implemented remote data logging techniques to measure dive duration and depth, and to estimate the effects of pressure on gas exchange, metabolism, heart rate, temperature regulation, and foraging efficiency in freely-diving sea birds and marine mammals.