James Murphy, Director of Sea All Dolphin Swims in Queenscliff, Victoria, didn’t take the direct road from high school to marine conservation. But trusting his gut has landed him in a dream job connecting people with nature.
In our latest Stories of Wonder episode, we spoke to James about how we can all do our bit for the environment, and what dolphins are like as coworkers.
The first time James (BComm ‘17), also known as ‘Murph’, was asked to fill in on the crew of a dolphin-viewing tour, he was surprised to learn there were dolphins in Victoria.
‘I was gobsmacked that it was real,’ he says. ‘And I think that was a moment like, “All right, well, this is what I’m going to do for the rest of my life.”’
The chaos of wild animals
For James, no two days taking tourists out to sea are the same.
‘I think it’s such a beautiful thing in the controlled world that we live in, to have this element of chaos that dictates everything,’ he says.
The unpredictability is part of the deal with wild animals, he adds. So, what are seals and dolphins like as colleagues?
‘Seals are super consistent,’ James says. ‘If you imagine a chocolate lab and put flippers on it instead of legs, there’s your seal, let’s go.’
‘Dolphins – there’s something else to them. There’s that sentience. They’ve got this power like nothing else I’ve experienced.’
When you spend a lot of time with dolphins, you develop a sense for when they’re around, James says.
‘I’ll be on the boat and I haven’t seen dolphins, no sign,’ he says. ‘And I’ll say, “Ooh, you feel that?” Everyone’s looking at me like, “What are you talking about?” I’ll point – and then the dolphins will just pop up.’
Animal welfare comes first
James gives no guarantees that his guests will swim with dolphins.
‘If you are in the business of offering guarantees, essentially you are looking to alter this natural behaviour. That’s absolutely not what we’re about,’ he says.
Instead, it’s about bringing people into a natural environment and giving wild animals the opportunity to come closer, if they choose to. When you have animals performing on a schedule, that comes at the cost of animal welfare.
Sea All Dolphin Swims respects the dolphins’ autonomy.
‘We had a woman with terminal cancer on one tour,’ James recalls. ‘This was pretty close to, you know, her time being done.’
Though the crew had located a pod of dolphins, the animals didn’t seem interested in interacting. After a conversation with the woman’s family, and apologies to the rest of the tour, the crew decided to let her in the water with a staff member.
‘We put in this woman in the water, and no word of a lie, the dolphins come straight up to her,’ James says. ‘They just sit with her for 10 seconds and then just move on.’
There wasn’t a dry eye on the boat afterwards.
‘That’s what we’re working with,’ James says. ‘That’s the potential. That’s the power that this can have.’
Different pathways to university
While today James has found career success with Sea All Dolphin Swims and as Founder of Southern Ocean Environmental Link (SOEL), a non-profit organisation protecting marine environments, his path there wasn’t straightforward.
‘Truth be told, I never really wanted to work,’ James admits.
After high school, James started a university degree and abandoned it.
‘I wasn’t ready to study,’ he says. ‘I was young, excitable – a classic turbocharged 18-year-old boy who just wanted to live his life. So that didn’t work out.’
But James eventually realised that if he wanted his kids to have the same opportunities he did growing up, he needed to get his act together. He entered Deakin University through TAFE.
‘My mum studied at Deakin. When I was a kid, it was always “Deakin, Deakin, Deakin,”’ he laughs.
He chose to study a commerce degree to further develop his business sense and skills.
‘Having a major in marketing really helped develop our business to where it is today.’
A partnership beyond graduation
James has gone from Deakin student to partner, providing placements to students through Deakin’s work-integrated learning program.
‘Work-integrated learning, volunteering – any of these things where you’re able to get practical hands-on experience, that is massively going to help your ability to be employed,’ James says.
When his first Deakin student showed up at Sea All Dolphin Swims, James didn’t know what to expect.
‘But they were incredible,’ he says.
The student became an employee at the company – and even met their future partner while at work on the boat. As they did, and as James has, other students, too, have found their dream careers through these work placements.
What’s the secret to finding work you can be passionate about?
‘I think if you’re not following your thinking mind, but trusting your instincts and your gut, there’s a really good chance you’ll be able to find things you can connect with just as much as I connect with this,’ James says.
Tourism that looks after the environment
Caring about giving people a great experience with happy animals comes alongside a deep love for the sea for James.
When he once spotted an old boat leaking oil or fuel into the Queenscliff marina, he called around local marine waste removal companies. But their services were eye-wateringly expensive.
‘That was a catalyst to then start looking at how can we use the See All Dolphin Swims platform – these inspired uni students, marine educators and our network – to do a little bit more, not just for the people, but also for the environment.’
He founded SOEL to help protect marine environments and animals.
‘We ended up building our own little marine waste traps,’ James says. ‘We’ve got three of them in the harbour at the moment.’
The marine waste traps became part of a citizen science project counting microplastics that kids can participate in.
‘It can be really overwhelming in the conservation space because it’s just such a huge thing. It doesn’t matter where you look. You walk down the street seeing rubbish, rubbish, rubbish,’ James says.
SOEL reminds people that grassroots action does matter.
‘Maybe we’re going to get that bit of rubbish,’ James says. ‘Maybe we’re going to help that injured animal. Maybe we’re going to smile at the person walking down the street. I think that’s all it comes down to: care and respect.
‘We’re all living in this same system. If we treat it with respect, and if we work together, then we’ve got a better shot for the future.’
Want to know more about James’ story? Watch the full Stories of Wonder interview on YouTube, or listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.