We are excited to bring you the first ever Ocean Impact Podcast episode recorded at sea! For this episode, our guest Jess Leitmanis was tuning in live from the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s RV Falkor as it criss-crossed the Tasman Sea to the north of Australia mapping the ocean floor in January 2021 during the ‘Pinging in the New Year’ expedition. Jess was onboard RV Falkor as part of the ‘artist-at-sea’ program developed by Schmidt Ocean Institute to ensure that art, creativity and science work hand in hand in inspiring the masses to understand and protect Planet Ocean. Jess Leitmanis is an Australian sculpture artist and conservationist with a deep connection to Planet Ocean. Through her work Jess explores ideas that encompass the environment, design, consumer culture, sustainability, sociology and philosophy. Jess is interested in our connection to the space around us – how we sculpt our environment, and how it sculpts us. In this episode Jess shares the story of her artistic journey and her passion for sculpture using found objects, namely marine debris rope (ghost gear) that has been washed ashore on remote coastlines. If you tune in to the YouTube recording of the podcast you can even see a work in progress of the artwork she completed at sea during the voyage. The finished piece can also be viewed on Jess’s website and social media. We would like to send a huge thank you to Jess and the team at Schmidt Ocean Institute for arranging this conversation and recording. For more information about Jess visit: https://www.jessicaleitmanis.com/ To learn more about Schmidt Ocean Insitute, the artist-at-sea program and the voyage Jess participated in please visit: https://schmidtocean.org/ https://schmidtocean.org/apply/artist-residency-program/ https://schmidtocean.org/cruise/pinging-the-new-year/ To follow Jess on Instagram visit: https://www.instagram.com/jessleitmanis/