Deep Dive: An Interview with Sam Johnson

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1. 

   S1 · 7 Sep 2026 · 57 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Chris Harkness

   Episode Notes Beyond Swim Lessons: Building Lifelong Water Safety What does it really mean for a child to be safe around water? Chris Harkness , President of SafeSplash Swim School , talks about why learning to swim is only part of the answer. He explains the Safer Swimmer Promise, the self-rescue skills children should develop, and why becoming a capable swimmer takes time, repetition, and consistent practice. For many children, that process can take eight to twelve months rather than a few weeks of lessons. The conversation looks at how we define water competency and whether children are…

2. 

   S1 · 3 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 8 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Nathalie Martin

   Episode Notes Beyond the Plan: Turning Water Safety Into Action Drowning prevention does not begin with a swimming pool. It begins with knowledge, local leadership, and the willingness to use the resources a community already has. Nathalie Martin discusses how her work in aquatics, research, humanitarian settings, and drowning prevention led to the creation of the Swim Global Project, a network designed to connect people across a water safety field that can often be fragmented. By bringing together swim school owners, researchers, public health professionals, operators, and other…

3. 

   S1 · 21 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 12 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Kurt Lager

   Episode Notes August 16, 2026 Before the Rescue: Can Hawaiʻi Become the World’s Model for Water Safety? Chief Kurt Lager on the Future of Ocean Safety in Hawaiʻi What if the future of ocean safety begins before anyone needs rescuing? Honolulu Ocean Safety is entering a new era. Now operating as an independent department, it has a greater ability to shape its staffing, equipment, facilities, budget and future direction. In this episode of Deep Dive Into Water Safety, Chief Kurt Lager explains how that change could help Hawaiʻi move beyond responding to emergencies and reach people before an…

4. 

   S1 · 14 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 8 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Kanesa Duncan Seraphin

   Episode Notes What Nine Championships Teach You About the Ocean: Kanesa Duncan Seraphin Nine-time Molokaʻi to Oʻahu prone paddleboard world champion Kanesa Duncan Seraphin has spent a lifetime learning from the ocean. A Hawaiʻi Waterman Hall of Fame inductee, marine scientist, educator, and host of the award winning Voice of the Sea , Kanesa brings a rare combination of elite ocean experience and scientific knowledge. Fresh off her historic ninth M2O victory, Kanesa joins Deep Dive Into Water Safety to talk about what decades on the water have taught her about preparation, judgment, risk,…

5. 

   S1 · 11 Aug 2026 · 54 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Alissa Magrum and Norm Reitter

   Episode Notes July 30, 2026: Alissa Magrum paddles with Kalani Vierra for Paddle for Life The conversation focuses on drowning prevention through awareness, collaboration, and data-driven solutions. Alissa Magrum ( NDPA ) discusses her participation in the Paddle for Life event, a 100-mile paddle around Kauaʻi led by Kalani Vierra, OSB Chief for Kauai, to raise awareness and funds for water safety. Alissa shares both the physical experience and the emotional motivation behind her work, emphasizing that drowning is often overlooked until it directly impacts families A key theme is that…

6. 

   S1 · 3 Jul 2026 · 39 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Sara Kehaulani Goo

   Episode Notes **What's Your Kuleana?The Question Hawaiʻi Asks the World What does kuleana really mean? In this thought provoking conversation, award winning journalist Sara Kehaulani Goo , President of Creator Content at The Washington Post and author of Kuleana: A Story of Family, Land, and Legacy in Old Hawaiʻi, shares the story behind her family's effort to protect ancestral land on Maui and the deeper journey that followed into history, identity, culture, and the responsibilities we inherit from those who came before us. Sara explains that kuleana is often translated as responsibility,…

7. 

   S1 · 29 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 5 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Sam Proffitt

   Episode Notes Beyond the Rescue: What One Rip Current Incident Teaches Us About Saving Lives This episode features Sam Proffitt, Ocean Rescue Director for Wrightsville Beach, firefighter, paramedic, veteran lifeguard, researcher, and member of the International Drowning Researchers' Alliance (IDRA). His work bridges frontline rescue operations and drowning research, including studies on drowning care, responder mental health, rip currents, and emergency messaging. Also joining the conversation was Lt. Jamie Miess of Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue. A recent high-profile rip current rescue…

8. 

   S1 · 25 Jun 2026 · 58 min

   Deep Dive: Brook and Zane Silvester

   Episode Notes ** Eyes for Lives: Building the Next Generation of First Nations Lifeguards What if one of the most effective ways to prevent drowning is not a new rescue technique, but helping people reconnect with culture, community, and the ocean? In this episode of Deep Dive Into Water Safety, Bundjalung Saltwater People Brook Silvester and his son Zane join the program to discuss the work they are doing to create new pathways into water safety for Indigenous youth on Australia's Gold Coast. Among many coastal First Nations communities in Australia, Saltwater People are those whose…

9. 

   S1 · 22 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 22 min

   Deep Dive: An Interview with Dr David Szpilman

   Episode Notes June 4, 2026: Dr David Szpilman: Drowning Is Preventable: What if one of the biggest barriers to preventing drowning isn't a lack of rescue skills, but how we think about drowning itself? Physician, researcher, and drowning prevention pioneer Dr. David Szpilman joins Deep Dive Into Water Safety to discuss the science, data, and lifesaving strategies that have helped reshape drowning prevention around the world and what Hawaiʻi can learn from them. Dr. David Szpilman is a physician, founder of SOBRASA (the Brazilian Lifesaving Society), creator of the internationally recognized…

10. 

    S1 · 19 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 9 min

    Deep Dive: An Interview with Dr Will Koon

    Episode Notes June 1, 2026: Dr Will Koon: Beyond Warning Signs: Rethinking Drowning Prevention in Hawaiʻi Dr. Will Koon is a drowning prevention researcher with Royal Life Saving Australia whose work focuses on understanding who is drowning, why they are drowning, and how communities can reduce risk through better data and targeted interventions. He has been involved in Australia's National Water Safety Strategy and is part of a broader effort that has helped drive significant reductions in drowning over the past two decades. What makes Dr. Koon's perspective particularly valuable is his…