The Aquarium has been providing free lectures and films by scientists, environmental writers, photographers and others since 1972. The Aquarium Lecture Series is presented free to the public through the generosity of the Lowell Institute, which has been providing funding for free public lectures at universities and museums since 1836. 

Lectures are free and open to the public. Registration is requested. All programs start at 7 p.m. in the Aquarium's Harborside Learning Lab, unless otherwise noted below.  Programs last approximately one hour followed by a reception.

Upcoming Lectures

View previous lectures this season.

 

Monday, Nov. 23

Minimizing Vessel Strikes to Endangered Right Whales: A Crash Course

in Conservation Science and Policy
Dr. Moira Brown, New England Aquarium Right Whale Team

The North Atlantic right whale is considered one of the most endangered of all large whales: Only about 400 individuals remain. Species recovery is, in part, contingent on reducing vessel-strike mortality. Dr. Moira Brown will explain how our science-based conservation program resulted in two implementations specifically designed to minimize the risk of lethal vessel strikes of right whales without unduly compromising vessel navigation and safety.

Moira Brown is a senior scientist in the Edgerton Research Lab at the New England Aquarium. She was a co-chair of the Canadian North Atlantic Right Whale Implementation Team and lead author on the Canadian Recovery Strategy for North Atlantic Right whales in Atlantic Canadian waters. Her research interests include population biology, genetics and demographic studies of right whales. Her conservation work is most recently focused on the issue of right whales and ship collisions in Canadian waters, and continues to be focused on the human-related threats faced by right whales and the identification of conservation measures to reduce the effect of human activities on their numbers.

Register now (free!)

Previous Lectures

Monday Sept. 21

IMAX Theatre

Sailors for the Sea

Join Sailors for the Sea for a presentation of the exploration voyage being made by the ship Ocean Watch, which is circumnavigating the North and South American continents. Captain Mark Schrader and his crew departed Seattle on May 31, 2009, are sailing through the Northwest Passage and will be landing in Boston for a week’s stay. Crew members from the Ocean Watch will participate in the presentation after the ship makes its way through the Arctic Circle and into Boston.They will continue to sail down the East Coast, around Cape Horn and up the West Coast, returning to Seattle in July 2010.

The crew’s mission is to build awareness of ocean health issues so that citizens understand the precipitous changes that are occurring at the poles and along our coasts, and what they can do to mitigate these changes.

Tuesday, Sept. 29

IMAX Theatre

The End of the Line, which premiered this year at the Sundance Film Festival, is the world’s first major documentary about the devastating effects of overfishing.

Imagine an ocean without fish. Imagine your meals without seafood. The End of the Line shows the effects of our global love affair with fish as food. It examines the imminent extinction of bluefin tuna, the impact on marine life resulting in a huge overpopulation of jellyfish and the profound implications of a future world with no fish.


The film follows investigative reporter Charles Clover as he confronts politicians and celebrity restaruanteurs who exhibit little regard for the damage they are doing to the oceans. Filmed across the world for over two years, the movie features top scientists, indigenous fishermen and fisheries enforcement officals.

Monday, Oct. 5

IMAX Theatre

A Sea Change is the first documentary about ocean acidification, directed by Barbara Ettinger and co-produced by Sven Huseby of Niijii Films.

imagine a world without fish. It’s a frightening premise, and it’s happening right now. A Sea Change follows retired history teacher Sven Huseby on his quest to discover what is happening to the world’s oceans. His quest takes him to Alaska, California, Washington and Norway. Speaking with oceanographers, marine biologists, climatologists, and artists, Huseby discovers that global warming is only half the story of the environmental catastrophe that awaits us. Excess carbon dioxide is dissolving in our oceans, changing seawater chemistry and the animals that inhabit the sea.

Chock full of scientific information, the feature-length film is also a paean to the ocean world and an intimate story of a Norwegian-American family whose heritage is bound up with the sea. See movie reviews.

Tuesday, Oct 13

A History of Marine Mammals at the Aquarium

Jenny Montague, Assistant Curator of Marine Mammals

Millions of visitors have enjoyed marine mammal programs at the Aquarium over the past 40 years. Training philosophy, public awareness and presentation style have changed significantly since 1969. From the original harbor seal exhibit, which was open 24/7, to the ship Discovery, to the recently opened New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center, explore the unique history of marine mammal training and presentation, and learn about some of the Aquarium's celebrated animals.

Jenny Montague’s marine mammal training career has spanned almost 30 years. It began in 1981 in California, where she worked with a variety of animals, including harbor seals, orcas, Asian river otters, dolphins, California sea lions and a number of stranded cetaceans. She has been at the Aquarium since 1988 and is currently the Assistant Curator of Marine Mammals.

 

Tuesday, Oct. 20

Jaws Revisited: The great White Shark in New England

Dr. Greg Skomal, Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries

This presentation will highlight the efforts of the Massachusetts Shark Research Program to study the ecology and life history of the great white shark. It will center on the recent occurrence of this highly elusive species in Massachusetts waters and the first-time use of advanced technology to examine its behavior and movements in the Atlantic.

 

Tuesday, Oct. 27

Prickly Pickles: The Fascinating World of Sea Cucumbers
Tim Werner, Conservation Biologist, New England Aquarium

Sea cucumbers are among the most conspicuous groups of animals in marine environments; their habitats range from shallow tropical shores to the deep sea. Close relatives of starfish, they are heavily exploited worldwide. Despite their commercial value and ubiquity, they remain one of the most poorly studied groups of marine animals; only an estimated one-half of tropical species have been described to date.

Tim Werner is a conservation biologist specializing in the science and management of living marine resources, with extensive international experience carrying out coral reef field surveys and conservation projects in Southeast Asia, the South Pacific, Latin America and Africa. He is Director of Marine Conservation Engineering at the New England Aquarium, in which capacity he manages collaborative ventures among engineers, fishermen and wildlife biologists with the goal of developing fishing methods that reduce bycatch of threatened animals.

Monday, Nov. 2

Rising From the Ashes: The phoenix Islands Protected Area
Randi D. Rotjan, Ph.D., Research Scientist, New England Aquarium

These days it is impossible to find an ecosystem that is untouched by man. Human effects are felt from the polar ice caps to the deep sea, and coral reefs are far from the exception. The major stressors on most reefs--sewage inputs, overfishing, point-source pollution and extensive tourism--are local. However, a few remote places still exist where reefs are not affected by these local stressors; humans only affect these reefs on a global level. The Phoenix Islands are among these treasures. Their remote location, coupled with their intensive regulations and protection, create a unique opportunity for scientists to study a reef free from local impact.

New England Aquarium researcher Randi Rotjan recently participated in a rare expedition to the Phoenix Islands. In this lecture she will share scientific findings as well as anecdotes from this remarkable adventure.

Monday, Nov. 9

Jacques Cousteau: The Sea King, a biography by Brad Matsen (on sale 10/2)

With the cooperation of many of Cousteau's collaborators, friends and family, Brad Matsen gives the first full picture of this remarkable life. Vividly conveying the people, the adventure, the science and the lure of the sea that shaped Cousteau's life, Matsen paints a luminous portrait of a man who profoundly changed the way we view, and treat, our planet.

Brad Matsen is the author of Titanic's Last Secrets, Descent: The Heroic Discovery of the Abyss and many other books about the sea and its inhabitants. He was a creative producer for the television series The Shape of Life, and his articles on marine science and the environment have appeared in Mother Jones, Audubon and Natural History, among other publications. He lives on Vashon Island, off the coast of Washington State.

 

Wednesday, Nov. 18

An American Tail:  The Life and Science of the American Lobster (Homarus americanus)
Anita Metzler, Lobster Facility Manager, New England Aquarium

The American lobster conjures up images of a boiled delicacy with drawn butter on your dinner plate, yet there is much more to know about these animals. The Aquarium’s Lobster Research and Rearing Facility has focused on raising, caring for and studying the early life stages of this iconic animal.  Learn about lobster life history and the ups and downs of raising these animals.  Current research on lobster shell disease and its impact on the animal and the fishery will also be discussed.
 
Anita Metzler has worked at the Aquarium since 2004. She started her Aquarium career as a Program Educator, and moved on to manage the Lobster Facility in 2005.  Her research experience includes crab ecology, plant genetic variation, and zebrafish developmental biology.