How New Technology Is Revealing the Secret Lives of Whales

September 17, 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Mānoa Campus, School of Architecture Auditorium (Room 205) 1899 University Avenue

Friends of the Waikīkī Aquarium Presents its 2026 Tim Guard Distinguished Lecture Series.

Giants of Change: How New Technology Is Revealing the Secret Lives of Whales and Why Their Health Matters to Us All
Featuring Professor Lars Bejder, Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology

Thursday, September 17, 2026 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Professor Lars Bejder’s lecture, “Giants of Change: How New Technology Is Revealing the Secret Lives of Whales and Why Their Health Matters to Us All,” will provide an overview of the latest research on how drones, artificial intelligence, satellites, and cutting-edge wildlife sensors enable scientists to measure whale health, track their epic migrations, understand the bonds between mothers and calves, and uncover how a changing climate and human activity are reshaping their lives. The lecture also offers a rare glimpse into one of the last great frontiers on our planet and explains why protecting whales is essential to the future of healthy oceans.

About Professor Lars Bejder, Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology Professor Lars Bejder joined the University of Hawaiʻi at ԴDz in 2018 and serves as Director of the Marine Mammal Research Program at the Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology, where he leads an internationally recognized team studying the ecology, behavior, health, and conservation of whales, dolphins, and pinnipeds.

With more than 180 scientific publications and book chapters, his research combines innovative technologies, including drones, non-invasive animal-borne tags, advanced statistical modeling, and long-term field studies, to better understand how marine mammals live and respond to environmental change and human activities such as tourism, shipping, and coastal development. His work provides critical scientific evidence to support conservation and sustainable ocean management.

Professor Bejder has advised leading national and international organizations, including the International Whaling Commission, the IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group, the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission, NOAA's Pacific Scientific Review Group, and government agencies in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Aarhus University in Denmark.


Ticket Information
Admission is Free, register online

Event Sponsor
Waikiki Aquarium, Mānoa Campus

More Information
(808) 923-9741, , Enter Title Here (PDF)

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