When I was invited to talk about orcas for Mensa Vancouver, there was only one possible theme. As a non-scientist who fell down the rabbit hole into the worlds of marine science, environmental philosophy and eco-ethics, I’ve found myself most intrigued by what scientists can’t explain (yet) about the way orcas - and other marine life - experience the world, what they know that and how they know it. The more I learn about marine life, the more the concept of “personhood” for sentient animals seems both inevitable and reductive - since I doubt that they’d really want to join our club. 

Mark Leiren-Young is a playwright, screenwriter, author and comedian who was captured by whales in 2016 after writing a radio documentary about the first orca displayed in captivity for CBC’s Ideas. That led to nine books about ocean life (so far), two documentaries and hosting the Skaana One Ocean podcast.