Blue whales are known to migrate thousands of kilometres between their breeding and feeding grounds. But after founding the Sri Lankan Blue Whale Project in 2008, acclaimed marine biologist Asha de Vos discovered that there was a resident blue whale population in the waters near Sri Lanka all year round.

In this podcast, hear what she has learnt about blue whales and why conservation projects in the developing world should invest in local scientific talent and infrastructure.

To delve deeper read Asha’s article The Problem with Colonial Science.

This podcast is hosted by Cat (Catharina) Vendl, presented by the UNSW Centre for Ideas and is supported by Inspiring Australia as a part of National Science Week.

Photo credit: Spencer Lowell, WIRED UK.

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