Shark Hero Talks: Jillian Morris

Jillian Morris is a renowned marine biologist, shark conservationist, photographer, and author. She is the founder of Sharks4Kids, a dynamic shark education program for students around the world. Sharks4Kids strives to create and strengthen the next generation of shark advocates through educational outreach and adventure. They offer free curriculums and activities for teachers and students and anybody that wants to learn more about sharks in a fun manner.

Sharks4Kids also offers free outreach programs for schools and community groups, as well as hands-on tagging and snorkeling experiences. As of 2019, through in-person visits and Skype lessons, Jillian and her team have connected with over 128,000 students in 60 countries. Their goal is to reach more students every year and provide more opportunities for them to see sharks and gain first-hand experience.

Jillian is also an avid scuba diver. She is a PADI Ambassadiver and was honored as a scuba diving Sea Hero by scuba diving magazine. She is also very influential on social media, with her Instagram account reaching over 45 thousand people.

As a human, Jillian is cheerful, enthusiastic, kind, bright, driven, and joyful. I enjoyed speaking with this very busy women on the phone and provide the transcript below.

What inspired you to save the shark?

“I’ve always loved the Ocean. I grew up in Maine and spent a lot of time going to the beach with my family. My dad used to go to Florida each year for his work, and my family and I would get to go snorkel. I snorkeled with my first shark when I was eight, and that inspired a curiosity in sharks. I was fascinated by all animals at that age, manatees, dolphins, and crawling through tide pools in Maine. Seeing a shark for the first time, a nurse shark, I read books about them trying to learn more.”

“Through my experiences traveling and working with sharks, I noticed that there is a certain hatred and fear around them. My perception of sharks was very different than what I was hearing. This observation turned into a mission to share these animals, their reality, with other people. I want other people to see what I see because sharks are incredible and very important for healthy oceans.”

“It’s been a lifelong fascination of sharks and wanting others to see the truth about them versus a lot of the misinformation that’s out there that has motivated me to save sharks.”

When and why did you start Sharks4Kids?

 

“I spent several years doing surf curriculums and other activities for other organizations. My mom is a teacher, so I would occasionally talk about my travels and shark work to kids. I thought it would be cool to have one place for teachers and students to access free photos, videos, and cool activities. I sat on that idea for a few years, until finally, in 2012, I decided to go with it. I recruited my husband, a videographer who does graphic design, and my best friend, who I’ve done close shoots of sharks. We all visited schools and loved working with kids. I recruited a third friend, who is a business person.”

“It was a pretty steep learning curve for all of us. It wasn’t anything we have ever done before. None of us were formally trained teacher or lesson plan developers. We spent a year training, then launched in November 2013. We got on board with Skype as an educational partner before the website opened. Virtual lessons were a big part of our curriculum. This is how we started, to connect kids with marine biologists so they can see firsthand and hopefully inspire them to protect the ocean.”

What is included in the dynamic range of educational materials offered by Sharks4Kids?

“We have a lot of lesson plans, full units connected by grade. We wanted to make it as easy as possible for teachers to meet the requirements. If they are studying predator-prey systems they can use any animals so why not make them sharks. We have a lot of crafts that go with the lessons, from writing to drawing to research projects for kids. We have a lot of coloring pages for kids of all ages to color. We have a lot of videos, including virtual reality videos. This year we added webinars. So far we’ve done over 65 webinars featuring scientists, divers, conservationists, and artists worldwide. When parents became teachers this year, we really wanted to give them a lot of opportunities to connect with interesting materials when the world shut down. It is all free for people to access.” 

What has Success looked like for Sharks4Kids?

“Success is when we see students create a post about sharks. When I get a parent or a teacher who comes up to me and says ‘the kids couldn’t stop talking about sharks, they want us to go see sharks.’ In the Bahamas there is a sort of disconnect. It is a shark sanctuary here, but many locals don’t get to experience the same things tourists come here for. Therefore, we work hard to try and connect students with what is happening locally. They need to know about sharks and the oceans to protect them. The Bahamas are their backyard and they are the best advocates for it. So I think success is when you have kids going home and talking about sharks, or coming up with something creative to show their passion for the ocean. That speaks volumes and shows me that we’ve made a connection.”

“When we make field trips here, a lot of times kids are really afraid as they’ve never been on a boat before. By the end of the day, we cannot get them out of the water. To me, we’ve changed their perception. Now we have these kids who are going to speak up for sharks and protect them. As they grow older, they’re going to vote for the oceans and make sustainable choices. When you see that change from fear to fascination, that is success. That change gives me hope that we can actually make a difference because I see it happen.”

Is there a way for unaffiliated teachers to access your curriculum for their classes?

“Yes, anyone can access it. It’s all on our website, you don’t have to be affiliated, any teacher can access it. www.sharks4kids.com, there is a teachers tab. All of our lesson plans have teaching guides. You don’t have to know anything about sharks. We try and make it super easy for people to use our site. We want teachers to use it so we strive to make the site as user-friendly as possible. If they have questions about it they can reach out to us. Especially in places far from the ocean where kids have never seen the ocean, it is also important for those kids to have access to these materials.”

What’s next for Sharks4Kids in 2021? Ideally

“We’re always updating our site as shark science evolves. The world is very different right now, all the in-person work we do had to stop in March 2020. We are hoping to get back to classrooms in 2021 if it is safe and possible. We are adding more video content. We will also be launching the next part of our webinar series in 2021.” 

Could you explain a little bit about the process of writing Norman, the Nurse Shark?

“I had always wanted to write a children’s book. When Sharks4Kids started, I thought a children’s book about sharks would be great. I own many shark books for kids, I’ve seen many of them in libraries as well, and I got tired of seeing books with a white shark with its mouth open on the cover. Even though you’re trying to get kids excited about sharks, there is still a potentially scary image on the cover.”

“I love nurse sharks. I wanted to make it cartoony and fun but also factual. In the process of reading the book, kids are learning about threats to the ocean and what’s happening with sharks. Norman takes place in the Bahamas, in the Exumas. I’ve been to the Exumas and the nurse shark dock, it’s a real place, and I thought it was incredible. Here are these sharks that have these goofy grins.”

“I figured a nurse shark would be the perfect species to feature in a children’s book. Kids will think it is cute and exciting and have fun reading the book with their parents or teacher. Kids will also learn about plastic pollution and different habitats and general facts about nurse sharks. This was a way to get kids interested in sharks and have fun but also sliding in fun facts that they may not realize they are learning along the way, but they are!”

What sort of work do you do for Oceanicallstars?

“My husband started Oceanicasllstars. It was photo and video work that has turned into full-time filming. He started it to bring groups of cinematographers together to film for conservation. My husband works full time; he’s shooting material for Animal Planet at the moment and BBC. Oceanicallstars is a group that films for TV shows but also using photos and videos for conservation messages, whether it’s creating graphics or donating footage for NGOs for PSAs.”

“Oceanicallstars has now evolved into his underwater film mark. This was years before Sharks4Kids and is how we started working together. We bring together individuals that want to create media that has a powerful message and spread awareness about the ocean we love.” 

How do you use your photography and film skills to tell the real story about sharks?

“As I was traveling and working on projects, I would go home and show my family photos I took. I quickly realized that my media was getting a reaction. People were amazed, inspired, and wanted to see the ocean for themselves. I hope media about the ocean encourages people to go out and have their own connection to the ocean. Anyone that can take photos or videos, especially with all these new tools to share media, can share their passion and connection to the ocean that inspires other people. Media is a tool for education; it is a tool for science.”

“For me, I use my photography and filmmaking skills for science and to tell a story. Now I tell that story to kids and get them excited about sharks using that format to learn. The world is visual. People learn through photo and video more and more. I think now more than ever, the power of photos and videos is so strong. Showing an image of a shark that looks like it’s smiling or a video to highlight a certain aspect of their anatomy or something they do sticks with people.” 

“I think it’s much easier to change a negative perception when you have imagery and a story you can tell versus simply talking to people. You can just show them.”

What was working on Shark Week like?

“Shark Week gets a lot of attention. For me, it was exciting because there is not a lot of female representation on shark week shows. It was an opportunity to share some research and show women and young girls that women do this. There is a huge lack of women in shark science and science and diving in general. We need more women in those fields. The more young women can see that women can do this, the more they will believe that they can get involved.”

“Having more women involved in marine science is better for the future of the ocean. Therefore they need more mentors like them that they can see. Most of our ambassador team for Sharks4Kids are female because I want young girls to see that ‘you can do this too if you’re passionate.’ Most of what they see on TV are men doing science, I think its really important to see someone like themselves that they can relate to. Shark Week has a massive audience, so to be able to put that message out there was a fantastic opportunity.”

When did you first get Scuba certified, and where did you have the moment you realized you wanted to continue until becoming a PADI ambassadiver?

“I learned to dive off the coast of Maine. Growing up in small town in Maine, I didn’t have access to those opportunities so I didn’t get certified until my third year in college. Immediately I got to spend some time diving in the Florida Keys and realized that warm water diving was way easier than cold water diving. I was glad I learned how to dive in cold water though.”

“Scuba diving changed my life and opened so many doors for me. It helped me explore the ocean the way I wanted to be in the ocean. There wasn’t necessarily a moment where it clicked for me that I wanted to continue onwards with this. Diving just changed everything and made me love the ocean even more and strengthened a passion for inspiring others to learn how to dive or go snorkeling, to have their own experience in the ocean. Once you have that experience, you develop your own story, that connection is extraordinary, which inspires change. Your own story and connection to the ocean change the way you vote, the way you shop, the groups you work with. What pushes people is driven by your own story and connection to the ocean

What are the top 3 locations that you have Scuba dived?

“Bimini is incredible, especially this time of year. The great hammerheads are here and that’s amazing.”

“I’d say Fiji is another one. The shark dive is a must. The reefs are also extremely healthy and I thought that was beautiful.”

“Around Australia, I’ve been to some beautiful areas there. I’m fortunate, I’ve traveled and dived all over the world but I’d say those three are my top ones. I’m really, really lucky that my backyard is one of them.”

What is your favorite shark species?

“The Great Hammerhead is my favorite animal on the planet. December is my favorite time of year because they are back in Bimini. They are incredible to see because most of them are named and tagged, so we recognize individuals. Each year when they come back, you are relieved that they have survived another year. It’s the most amazing creature, and I love every moment I get to spend in the water with them.”

If you were to obtain a research grant from a university right this second? How would you use it?

“I’ve always been fascinated by tiger sharks and their migration routes. There are shark sanctuaries in the Caribbean, but they are pretty spread out, and these animals are extremely migratory. So, they run these gauntlets of areas where there is targeted shark fishing. I want to look at those routes and get larger scale protection for these species. I think establishing more regulations to ensure when tiger sharks migrate through regions where they might go and breed or give birth is really important. So researching more about tiger shark migration is what I’d be interested in doing with a research grant.”

What facts about sharks matter the most when legislation is involved?

“It’s tricky. I don’t think there is one answer because it depends on where you are. I think population dynamics are really important and what part of their life history they are spending in an area. For example, areas where breeding is happening and where sharks give birth is really critical. How many sharks are in an area, how many different species? What fishing threats are there, or external coastal development? You need to have different sets of data depending on the area.”

“It’s not a single answer, it really depends on what is happening in that region. Then, figuring out how to put a management policy in place so that those populations can remain healthy is the next step. Whether they are there year-round or seasonal.” 

What is your biggest advice to undergraduate students pursuing careers in conservation?

“Volunteering and internships. Volunteering and gaining experience, whether it’s in a lab, aquarium, in the field, is essential. Everyone can get a marine biology degree, but if you’ve never been out in a boat or lab, it’s really hard to compete with those who have.”

“Research experience also helps you figure out what you really want to do. Many students say they want to work with sharks but they don’t actually know how or what they want to do with sharks, because it’s a pretty broad topic. Volunteering and internships help you narrow down where you want to work, your areas of interest, and make contacts and connections. Networking is important for getting jobs and additional opportunities. Therefore, I think volunteering and gaining as much experience in the field you’re interested in is important. You can have a lot of fun, meet new people. I’m very glad I did this. I always tell people how important it is to gain experience. Now more than ever, just a degree is not enough.”

Keep up with Jillian’s adventures here on her Instagram and Twitter! Stay in tune with Sharks4Kids on Instagram and Twitter or directly on their website.