This one’s for aspiring seaweed farmers, kelp ladies and anyone who loves a good seaweed yarn. We’re talking seaweed babies, wild harvesting, kelp farming and Ecklonia radiata - the backbone of the Great Southern Reef, also known as common kelp, leather kelp, thorny kelp or golden kelp.

Jo Lane has a background in marine science and sustainable coastal environments and is the owner of Sea Health Products, which make small-batch kelp products on the South Coast of NSW. She’s currently working on asparagopsis in South Australia as a research Lead with the Australian Sustainable Seaweed Alliance and, as a quite serious “side hustle”, she’s also developing kelp seedstock with a view to get kelp farming and restoration projects happening in Australia.

You can find Jo on LinkedIn. You can find and contact me @seaweed.people.

Links to research, projects and stories touched on in this ep:

Ecklonia radiata (Atlas of Living Australia)

The story of Betty, the original “Kelp Lady”

Marine heatwaves and proliferation of sea urchins on Australia’s east coast

Biology and Ecology of the Globally Significant Kelp Ecklonia radiata Ecklonia - covers reproductive cycle (Wernberg et al, 2019)

Churchill Fellowship

GreenWave - global network of regenerative ocean farmers

ASSA Research to optimise propagation and growth of the red seaweed Asparagopsis

Homeward Bound leadership program for women in STEMM

This episode was recorded and produced between Gadigal/Wangal land and Kaurna land. I acknowledge and pay respects to First Nations people and their elders past and present as the ongoing custodians of Sea, Land and Sky Country.

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