Patrick Nason, Ph.D., Anthropologist and Expedition Leader

Patrick is a scholar, sailor, and diver devoted to ocean conservation. As a cultural anthropologist, he lived among the legendary sharkcallers of Papua New Guinea where he examined the complex politics of ecological knowledge production and representation. While living in the village, he was initiated into the Tanxam clan and taught to call sharks from a traditional dugout canoe.

Following his doctoral fieldwork, Patrick was invited aboard the world’s first residential cruise ship as a lecturing anthropologist and guide on a three-week expedition through Melanesia. In this and other public speaking events, he emphasizes the interconnectedness of biological and cultural diversity.

At home in the Western Hemisphere, Patrick has worked as captain aboard dive boats and private yachts in South Florida and tour boats in busy New York Harbor. When not abroad or at sea, he teaches environmental anthropology at Columbia University and introductory boatbuilding in the New York City Public Schools.