Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our "Imagine This" series — where the magic of miniboats comes alive through the voices and visions of those who make it all possible.

Each episode will paint a vivid picture of discovery, connection, and curiosity — not just tracking the voyages, but exploring the challenges and unexpected outcomes behind them.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

What happens when a person that finds a miniboat decides to help build one? Since 2021, Fishery Officer Brittany Jay has answered the call when student-built miniboats wash up along the rugged coast of Newfoundland and Labrador — first the BHS Roweboat from Rhode Island, and P.I.E. on the Tide from Maine. Each recovery sparked classroom connections that stretched across borders, and a new question began to take shape: what if students here could be the ones launching, instead of relaunching? This episode follows Brittany's journey from finder to builder, the partnership with Avoca Collegiate and the Qalipu First Nation in Badger, and the unforgettable day a small community gathered to unveil the Newfie Crew 709 — a boat, a dream, and a story now ready to set sail.

Visit educationalpassages.org/boats/newfiecrew709/ for more information about the boat and project, as well as educationalpassages.org/boats/bhsroweboat/ and educationalpassages.org/boats/pieonthetide/ for more about the other boats mentioned in this episode.

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series — where the stories behind our miniboats reveal something even deeper than ocean currents and GPS tracks.

Each episode invites you to step into a moment of possibility — to feel the anticipation, the uncertainty, and the extraordinary connections that unfold when students send something small into a very big ocean.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

Ever heard of six degrees of separation? Well, this is a story with only one. In May 2026, three miniboats found themselves connected by a thread no one had ever planned for. To understand how, you have to rewind ten years, to a brand-new research vessel's very first cruise and a high school science project that nobody quite expected would still be sailing in 2026. Along the way: a buoy array, the Azores, an Albatross, and a decade-long coincidence we're still trying to wrap our heads around.

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series — where the stories behind our miniboats reveal something even deeper than ocean currents and GPS tracks.

Each episode invites you to step into a moment of possibility — to feel the anticipation, the uncertainty, and the extraordinary connections that unfold when students send something small into a very big ocean.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

The Cape Cod Sea Turtle Project, where students, scientists, and community partners work together to understand how ocean currents impact cold-stunned sea turtles. Through the use of student-built miniboats and drifters, classrooms become part of real-world research—tracking movement, collecting data, and uncovering patterns in the ocean. This is a story of hands-on learning, collaboration, and discovery, showing how understanding the movement of water can help protect marine life and power the blue economy.

Sources & More Info:

• Educational Passages Project: https://educationalpassages.org/capecodseaturtleproject/
• Mass Audubon Sea Turtle Project: https://www.massaudubon.org/places-to-explore/wildlife-sanctuaries/wellfleet-bay/projects/sea-turtles
• Studentdrifters.org
• Page FM, Manning J, Howard L, Healey R, Karraker NE. 2023. Developing bottom drifters to better understand the stranding locations of cold-stunned sea turtles in Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts. PeerJ 11:e15866 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.15866).
• Cold Stunned Sea Turtles: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/cold-snaps-and-stunned-sea-turtles
• More on Jim Manning's work: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/low-cost-technology-helps-connect-fishermen-and-students-science

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series — where the stories behind our miniboats reveal something even deeper than ocean currents and GPS tracks.

Each episode invites you to step into a moment of possibility — to feel the anticipation, the uncertainty, and the extraordinary connections that unfold when students send something small into a very big ocean.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

A classroom on Peaks Island, Maine builds a miniboat called P.I.E. on the Tide and fills its cargo hold with dozens of Flat Stanleys — tiny paper travelers ready for adventure. The boat sails into a quiet cove in Newfoundland, where it’s discovered by a crew working on the water and eventually delivered to a nearby school. What happens next is a coincidence so perfect it feels almost scripted. In Flat Stanley Finds a Sweet Ride, we share the story of how a simple classroom tradition, a student-built boat, and a little help from the ocean came together to create one very sweet connection across the sea.

Read more and see what happens next; https://educationalpassages.org/boats/pieonthetide/

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series - Where the magic of miniboats come alive through the voices and visions of those who make it all possible.

Each episode will paint a vivid picture of discovery, connection, and curiosity — not just tracking the voyages, but exploring the challenges and unexpected outcomes behind them.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

Since it's February, we’re talking about love — why we LOVE miniboats! Not just because they carry love letters to the world, but we will share some of the extraordinary true moments they've brought us—serendipity in Nantucket, a wedding-day connection in Australia, and the unforgettable journey of the Rye Riptides: A classroom in the middle of a pandemic launches a miniboat into the Gulf Stream. Students track it for months as the world feels uncertain and disconnected. What happens isn’t just a remarkable ocean crossing, but a powerful reminder that curiosity can anchor us, stewardship can unite us, and even the smallest boat can carry connection, resilience, and love across an entire ocean basin.

Visit https://educationalpassages.org/support to make a gift which helps these stories continue, and visit https://educationalpassages.org/boats/ryeriptides/ to see pictures and the full story of the Rye Riptides that was featured in this episode.

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series - Where the magic of miniboats come alive through the voices and visions of those who make it all possible.

Each episode will paint a vivid picture of discovery, connection, and curiosity — not just tracking the voyages, but exploring the challenges and unexpected outcomes behind them.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

Message in a Bottle 2.0 tells an extraordinary true story of chance, connection, and community. When the Crimson Cyclone, launched on Christmas Eve 2023, made an unexpectedly quick landing along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, it set off a chain of events, with an unlikely connection at the heart of it all. This episode shares how curiosity sent into the ocean—whether by bottle or by boat—can return as meaningful connections, new programs, and lasting opportunities for students, reminding us that learning and community often grow from the most unexpected beginnings.

Visit https://educationalpassages.org/support to make a gift which helps these stories continue, and visit https://educationalpassages.org/boats/crimsoncyclone/ to see pictures and the full story of the miniboat featured in this episode.

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series - Where the magic of miniboats come alive through the voices and visions of those who make it all possible.

Each episode will paint a vivid picture of discovery, connection, and curiosity — not just tracking the voyages, but exploring the challenges and unexpected outcomes behind them.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

This episode tells the remarkable, ongoing story of a student-built miniboat that has connected classrooms, countries, and generations since its first launch in 2016. What began as a high school research project in Connecticut became a global journey across the Atlantic, linking students in the U.S., Ireland, the UK, the Canary Islands, the Bahamas, and then North Carolina through shared discovery, letters, data, and friendship. Relaunched again and again by new students each time, Lancer carries gifts in her cargo hold and lessons in her wake, proving that learning doesn’t end at the shoreline. This episode reflects on how one small boat became a “gift that keeps on giving” — inspiring curiosity, community, and connection year after year — and invites listeners to help keep her legacy sailing into the future.

Visit https://educationalpassages.org/support to make your gift and help keep the Lancer's story alive (https://educationalpassages.org/boats/lancer/)

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.

Season 4 of the Educational Passages Podcast continues with our “Imagine This” series - Where the magic of miniboats come alive through the voices and visions of those who make it all possible.

Each episode will paint a vivid picture of discovery, connection, and curiosity — not just tracking the voyages, but exploring the challenges and unexpected outcomes behind them.

Now press play, close your eyes, and imagine this:

How far can a summer project carry the dreams of a new generation of ocean explorers? Sparked by hands-on learning with the Oregon Coast STEM Hub, high school students along the Oregon coast build an uncrewed sailboat—the Yaquina Neversink—and launch it into the Pacific. What follows is an extraordinary eight-month voyage across thousands of miles. This miniboat’s resilient journey forges global connections, breaks records, and brings students closer to science, community, and the power of the ocean itself. Guided by a name rooted in hope and heritage, this tiny vessel proves just how far small beginnings can truly travel.

Visit https://educationalpassages.org/boats/yaquinaneversink/ for more information about the boat and project - and what happened next!

Support the show

Educational Passages is a non-profit organization that seeks to connect people around the world to the ocean and each other through unique global experiences.