Be transported through the living science of Southeast Alaska’s coastal rainforest with The SeaBank Chronicles.

In 7-minute transmissions rich with immersive audio effects, you’ll groundtruth terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems guided by a trusted radio operator. Discover ancient forests, a wild and silvery nation of salmon, and the human communities finding home among them.

Learn more about the SeaBank Initiative here.

#1 – Refuge: Do You Hear a Climate Stronghold?

Logbook 1, Transmission 1: Ancient forests, a silvery nation of salmon, and human communities find hope in emerging science

Follow the voice of your radio operator into the SeaBank—a bank in and of the sea where ecological riches find refuge. Pull out a map and pencil in the boundaries of this rare ecosystem, then discover why scientists believe its coastal temperate rainforest and connected marine perimeters have an important future as a climate stronghold. Hear the sounds of ocean waves, glacial winds, and wild creatures of earth and sea. View resources and credits.

#2 – When Conditions Align: A Gathering of Mountains, Wind, and Water

Logbook 1, Transmission 2. Take a trip back in time to hear how the SeaBank formed and why human communities have benefitted as a result

Take a trip back in time to hear how the SeaBank foundation was formed nearly half a billion years ago, what conditions aligned to create a coastal temperate rainforest, and the benefits to human communities that arose as a result. Learn about orogeny, orographic lift, and adiabatic cooling—all of which play a part in the SeaBank’s unrivaled ecosystem and the astonishing services it offers humanity, free of charge. View resources and credits.

#3 – A Map in Four Dimensions: Amid Blowing Winds, an Old-Growth Forest is Born

Logbook 1, Transmission 3. An ecosystem with four dimensions?

An ecosystem with four dimensions? In this transmission, survey the SeaBank’s interconnected habitats (forests, glaciers, estuaries, offshore waters) and enter their fourth dimension: time. Learn about ecological succession, the transformational powers of wind, and dynamic equilibrium—a state of balance amidst constant change. Enjoy the sounds of windchimes, the passage of time, raindrops, and songbirds. View resources and credits.

#4 – Carbon Sink: A Supply Box Yields Natural Climate Solutions

Logbook 1, Transmission 4. Good news from your radio operator. You receive a supply box in this transmission

Good news from your radio operator. You receive a supply box this transmission—pilot bread, chocolate, and the latest research in carbon science. Weather patterns are changing across the world, including the SeaBank. Yet scientists are hopeful about the carbon-sequestering might of Southeast Alaska. Discover why cool, wet temperate forests like the SeaBank contain the world’s most influential carbon sinks. Wrap yourself in the sounds of marine radio weather reports, seabirds, coastal winds, and scientists at work. View resources and credits.

#5 – Water World: The Gulf of Alaska Holds Mystery… and Looming Threats

Travel to the SeaBank’s deepest realm‘

Find yourself in the SeaBank’s deepest realm—the Gulf of Alaska. Start by examining a photograph of an icy glacial plume where it crosses the coastal boundary, then consider the mystery of why Southeast Alaska’s offshore waters are among the most biologically productive in the world. But danger lurks, too. Learn how industrial trawling threatens food security, depletes fish stocks, and exacerbates climate change. Sounds include rushing rivers, bubbling phytoplankton, and the perils of unchecked technology. View resources and credits.

#6 – Boundary Lines: A Perilous Secret Hides in a Watershed

There’s more than water in a SeaBank watershed. Do some hiking and find a transboundary mine.

Even rainforests have sunny days. It’s time to put on your hiking boots and climb a SeaBank watershed. Along the way, learn about the relationship between watersheds and Southeast Alaska’s ultimate ecosystem engineer: salmon. But prepare yourself—you’ll also encounter the well-kept secret of transboundary mines. Test a tailings pond for heavy metals and hear news headlines from the 2014 Mount Polley Mine breach. Southeast Alaskans are fighting back, and so can you. Enjoy mixed water noises, footsteps on gravel, and cheerful whistling. View resources and credits.

#7 – Seeking Shelter: Knock Here for Climate Resilience

The National Weather Service warns that a fierce coastal storm is approaching the SeaBank. Seek shelter immediately. The might of old-growth forests and wetland buffers offer protection from extreme weather events while resilient human communities have climate adaptation plans in place.

In the final episode of this season, find yourself in the path of a powerful coastal storm. Follow instructions from your radio operator and seek shelter in the ecosystem of Southeast Alaska. Protected by the might of ancient forests and sturdy wetland buffers, residents of these resilient SeaBank outposts are gathering to share myriad ideas for adapting to climate change and preserving life-giving lands and waters in a swiftly changing world. View resources and credits.