Oceanographic (OM): How did your fascination with the ocean develop? Why did you decide to become a marine biologist?

Lauren Arthur: “I grew up on the east coast of Scotland and spent most weekends and summers by the chilly North sea, body-boarding, rock-pooling, and swimming. I was obsessed with the ocean. I did believe at one point becoming a mermaid was a real career path but soon realised that wasn’t going to happen. I witnessed many dolphins and whales beach themselves on the shore and at a very young age, I decided I wanted to study those animals. I never waivered or changed my mind and went on to study marine biology at university.”

OM: You’ve worked as a live TV presenter on land and in the water. How did that come about?

Lauren Arthur: “I worked as a resident marine biologist in the Maldives for almost eight years and after deciding I needed a new challenge, I got a job offer to work for WildEarth TV on the pilot for their first ever live TV show underwater. This involved presenting live broadcasts with headphones and a microphone built into the full-face mask and answering questions in real time, creating engaging and educational live conversations with a global audience, ultimately striving to connect people to nature.”

OM: What are the challenges of presenting underwater?

Lauren Arthur: “I am a Divemaster and have been diving since 2008 all over the world but I never had verbal conversations underwater. Little did I realise, once I started talking underwater, my near-perfect air consumption would deplete rapidly. And not only that, you have to present to camera, listen to your director whilst narrating what you see, as well as all the other responsibilities that come with diving such as, looking out for your buddy who is your cameraman, be aware of your surroundings, search for things to talk about, monitor your depth and air consumption. It’s a whole different ball game and naturally, the broadcast ends when you run out of air so could be 1 hour or 20 minutes.”

OM: In what way do wildlife shows can shape public opinion, and why is this important?

Lauren Arthur: “There are different types of wildlife shows available but live wildlife, for me, is the most authentic and ‘real’ experience you can have from your sofa. WildEarth TV for example, takes the audience along for the ride and nothing you see is manipulated or edited, everything happens as you see it. Humans relate to humans and having the human element narrating authentic wildlife can be really powerful, especially underwater which is a realm many struggle to relate to. As visual beings, we process visuals 60,000 times faster than content in our brains and the art of visual storytelling helps us communicate messages, emotions, narratives and information in a way which reaches viewers at a deep and lasting level. Therefore storytelling about our natural world has a huge impact on one’s connection to nature and it is important these stories are accurate and relatable.”