Conference Speakers
Mike deGruy
An award-winning filmmaker and television host specializing in natural history and underwater programming, deGruy’s 25+ year career has allowed him to produce and film in the world's most remote and spectacular locations. deGruy founded the Santa Barbara based Production Company, The Film Crew, Inc., in 1979. The Film Crew houses full production and post-production facilities.
Mike deGruy has a BS in Marine Zoology and three years of a PhD program in Marine Biology at the University of Hawaii. He sits on three boards in Santa Barbara and speaks frequently in International venues.
Mike has been involved in the production of over 20 films including Tempest From the Deep, Blue Planet, Pacific Abyss, and Last Mysteries of the Titanic. Mike has also been the recipient of over 30 National and International awards including multiple EMMY's.
Charles Delbeek
J. Charles Delbeek is Senior Aquatic Biologist at the California Academy of Sciences' Steinhart Aquarium. Reopened on September 27th, 2008 the highlight of the Aquarium is a 212,000 gallon live reef display. His professional interests include the ecology and captive husbandry of marine fishes, corals, aquatic plants and cephalopods. In addition to writing a monthly reef aquarium column for Aquarium Fish Magazine and Coral Magazine, he has co-authored three popular aquarium books with Julian Sprung, The Reef Aquarium series, considered by many to be the definitive works in the field. Charles is also principal of JCD Consulting, www.jcdaquariumdesign.com
Steven Pro
Steven Pro has had an aquarium for as long as he can remember, but didn't get into marines until sometime in the early 1990's. He started working full-time in the ornamental aquatics industry in the summer of 1995, primarily doing design, installations, and on-going maintenance of aquariums. He has also worked previously for Red Sea and IceCap Inc. Along the way, he was a contributor to WetWebMedia, a blogger for reefs.com and Reef2Reef.com, had over 40 articles published with more on the way, spoken at over 60 clubs and conferences, and co-hosted MACNA 19. He is currently the President of MASNA.
In this presentation, Steven will discuss the myriad of things that can sting, bite, poison, infect, or otherwise attempt to kill you, that reside in the typical reef aquarium. It is not too serious, though. It is mostly a collection of assuming anecdotes of how Steven or his friends have gotten hurt and what you can do to protect yourself from repeating his mistakes.
Ret Talbot
Ret Talbot is an award-winning freelance writer and photographer who frequently reports on the marine aquarium industry. Most often addressing topics at the intersection of the hobby, science and conservation, Talbot is a strong advocate for a robust and sustainable marine aquarium trade where aquarists serve a critical role on the front line of reef conservation. As a marketing consultant and editor, he has worked with many leading marine aquarium companies to promote that vision. When he isn't writing about saltwater aquaria (or tending to one of his five tanks), Ret is often fly fishing in either salt- or freshwater and writing about conservation issues related to angling and healthy fisheries.
Trained as a writer, Ret holds degrees in writing from both Wheaton College (Massachusetts) and the University of St. Andrews (Scotland). He has travelled the world as a mountaineering and fishing guide, as well as a writer seeking out stories in some of the most remote and inaccessible regions on the face of the Earth. His aquarium-related books include The Complete Idiot's Guide to Saltwater Aquariums (September 2009) and Coral (forthcoming). His aquarium articles can be found in print publications such as Coral Magazine, where he is a senior editor, and Tropical Fish Hobbyist or online at Suite101.com, where he is the saltwater aquarium feature writer. Ret and his wife Karen, an artist known for her scientific illustrations of fishes, split their time between Laguna Beach, California and Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Is the marine aquarium industry sustainable? What roles do wild collection, mariculture and aquaculture play in the trade today? What does the future of a robust and sustainable marine aquarium hobby really look like? To answer these questions, the hobbyist needs to know the real impact the marine aquarium trade has on source countries and the reef ecosystems that lie within their national boundaries, an that's exactly what author and photographer Ret Talbot has spent the better part of the last two years researching for Coral Magazine. In this presentation, Ret will share his experiences diving with local fishers, interviewing fisheries managers and scientists, and following numerous animals from Pacific reefs to reef tanks in the United States. You will see what source country collection looks like, how it is done and what impact it has on socio-economic development. You should also expect to walk away from this presentation with some concrete steps you can take as a hobbyist to acquire the healthiest animals that support an environmentally and socio-economically sustainable trade.