LAURA MADRUEÑO is mainly known for being the presenter of “El tiempo”(The weather) in the TV channel Telecinco. In addition, and perhaps this facet is unknown to some of our readers, she is passionate about everything related to the sea and, especially, diving, conservation of the oceans and its marine fauna.
Laura is part of the team of the production company “We are water films”, which has made excellent documentaries of great beauty and internationally recognized. With them, in addition, a very important work is done to raise awareness of the progressive degradation of the seas and oceans, the pollution caused by plastics and marine species in danger of extinction.
In JUN-2021, Laura publishes her first book “We are water” where she tells us her experiences as a diver, and tells us in a shocking way the damage we are doing to the oceans, and her commitment to the search for solutions.
We thank Laura Madrueño in advance for sharing with us her projects and experiences in this exciting interview.
Interview with Laura Madrueño
Laura, your relationship with the sea starts very early, can you tell us about your first memories, what would you highlight from your beginnings in the deep?
Since I was born I have spent long periods of time in the Mediterranean and thanks to my parents, pioneer divers, I have grown up near the sea and sailing. In the summers of my childhood I remember waiting for my father on the shore every day, and when he came back from diving we would dive into “the black”. When I was only three years old, I hung onto my father’s neck on his back, and we went down a few meters… I remember perfectly that down there, not only was there no darkness, but light and colors appeared, and I was fascinated by something absolutely hypnotic: those gigantic meadows of green posidonia dancing before our eyes to the sound of the tide.
And of course, looking at the fish and searching for treasures, my father showed me the starfish, those colors that did not exist outside the ocean. The shells, the anemones, the little octopuses… a real spectacle that still amazes me thirty years later.
All my life I have been “like a fish” and I continue to dive in the sea no matter what time of the year it is. I have been diving for almost twenty years and in my beginnings I mainly dived along our coasts.
Diving is one of your passions, and you are able to dive both in “apnea” and with compressed air cylinders. How do you think this sport has evolved, is it accessible to everyone or only to a few?
Diving has evolved a lot in the last thirty years, when my parents got their certification they needed months of physical preparation and different tests in and out of the water, and they didn’t even have BCDs to compensate.
Currently the courses are done in just one weekend and can be done by everyone, they are very simple, in my opinion too much, I think it would be essential to carry out a little more complete training. The equipments have also advanced a lot, they are comfortable and diverse. In short, scuba diving and freediving are very safe sports that we can practice with family or friends and enjoy a great plan.
Laura, you have dived in remote places, and in extreme situations; for example, with whales or surrounded by sharks. Have you ever been afraid, what has been your most exciting moment underwater?.
Thanks to the filming of documentaries I have had unspeakable experiences, with bull sharks, hammerheads, nurse sharks, whales… with manta rays at night… in the book I share the best moments of my diving diary, which I have been writing for more than twenty years.
But perhaps the most special memory I have is the day I went freediving with pilot whales. They are amazing animals, the way they behave with their calves, with the rest of the pod, their dives… I have been lucky enough to dive with newborns who still showed the marks of having been in their mother’s womb. Some little ones approached me face to face, and watched me carefully, because they surely had never seen a human being before.
Pollution generated by human activity and climate change are deteriorating the oceans, and there are species in serious danger of extinction. What is your vision, what are we doing wrong, what are we doing wrong?
In recent years I have been able to see the degradation of the oceans in many places on the planet, and that is why I continue to work in documentaries, in talks and also why I have written this book to try to disseminate and provide tools. Broadly speaking, a good part of the carbon dioxide we produce is absorbed by the oceans, and this causes substantial changes in the composition and temperature of the water.
These changes are already affecting species that are unable to survive at a certain temperature or with more acidic water, and therefore force them to migrate to colder areas or where their shells do not corrode, for example if they are crustaceans. But the problem is that systems as complex as reefs are unable to move at the necessary speed and that is why we are seeing so many dead or bleached reefs at depths of between 3 and ten meters. It’s just heartbreaking.
Unfortunately, there are hundreds of species in grave danger of vulnerability; we are currently experiencing the sixth mass extinction of species in our history.
Many species of sharks are critically endangered by overfishing, as well as bluefin tuna, many whales… the threat of plastic is also tremendous, and the deforestation of forests. Orangutans, gorillas, polar bears, and thousands of endemic species disappear daily, without even having been catalogued, in jungles such as Borneo or the Amazon.
More than 5000 species are endangered today. Of course in my book you will also find a lot of information on this subject, on what we can do to change our habits and be more aware of our way of living and our environment.
Laura, to let our readers know about your project “We are water films”, how did it come about, at what stage is it at and what are its objectives?
We are actually a very small team, a real family that started sharing their passion, diving, to show that magical underwater world. Over time we began to professionalize and the short films became documentaries that have already won national and international awards.
We are a group of colleagues who have been working for seven years on these documentary projects with which we intend to bring the wonders of the underwater world and nature to the general public and above all, raise awareness about the impact of human beings on our planet.
Our work is committed to endangered species such as sharks. We are also dedicated to organize screenings and lectures related to climate change, ecology, plastics and overfishing, trying to raise awareness about our consumption habits.
You can follow us on IG (https://www.instagram.com/wearewaterfilms/?hl=es ) where you will see images of our shoots and tips to live in a more sustainable way.
You have made several documentaries, which have been recognized with national and international awards. Which one do you remember best? What would you highlight from your latest work: “Rumbo al pasado”(Heading to the past)?
Maybe I wouldn’t tell you a specific project, but the fact that we have specialized from the beginning in working with sharks. It has been a challenge for us because on several occasions it has required us to get more training to be able to dive deeper or freedive, but it has been worth it. There is nothing compared to being able to spend some time with these amazing animals in the wild, in their natural environment, watching them swim, with that unique elegance.
And I feel very proud of our work because it is essential that people get to know these sharks better, that they stop being afraid of them because they are essential for the marine balance and we are annihilating them in an unspeakable way through the practice of finning around the world.
In “Rumbo al pasado” you will be able to see schools of hammerhead sharks in the waters of Sudan! And we also do a very nice job with the submerged city project that Cousteau carried out and where we can still dive.
Laura, we have had your book “We are water” in our hands, and we loved it; your enthusiasm is contagious. Can you tell us about your experience as a writer, what message you want to convey?
Writing this book has been the most important challenge of my life.
I have left my soul in this book to try to spread this passion for the sea, so that people stop being afraid of our oceans. Human beings have explored more over their heads than in the depths of their own planet, and we have a totally alien world at our fingertips, which leaves me speechless every day that I dive.
We need people to know how much the oceans need to survive, and also to know firsthand how polluted the seas are, how much global warming or overfishing is affecting them… because it is urgent that we act as soon as possible.
In this book I analyze in depth these three major problems and what could be the solutions and consequences in our near future, in addition to providing the reader with the necessary tools to do their bit.
An unavoidable curiosity Laura, as this is an interview for a publishing house for sailors: Are you a fan of sailing, what do you think about the world of sailing?
I love sailing! It’s one of my favorite things in the world.
I immediately took the skipper’s certificate to be useful on board and to be able to go diving or on vacation. I really enjoyed the course with my friends from Cenáutica. I have done sailing several times and it is also a sport that I like very much, I find it fascinating to watch the professionals sailing.
Many of our readers, ocean or coastal sailors, share a concern for the oceans. What can we do to contribute to their conservation, do you see the future of the oceans with optimism?
It’s difficult to be optimistic about the challenge ahead, but of course I believe that we can do a lot and that billions of daily actions can make a huge difference.
To change these habits, it is first necessary to know the oceans, to know how much and why they are necessary, only then will people begin to protect and care for them. Habits at home are fundamental and together we can change the world’s routines.
When it comes to consumption, do it in a reasonable way, consuming less is the easiest thing we can do: less heating, less aacc, less gasoline, low consumption lights, reuse more things, clothes, technology … less plastic when shopping, no food delivery, do not use coffee capsules, plastic bags, plastic straws, plastic bottles … millions and millions are still being used every minute in the world.
It is essential to recycle correctly and read the labels in the supermarket, buy local products, in bulk, sustainable fish, avoid consuming shark or tuna, drastically reduce food from animal derivatives, avoid palm oil ….
For example, I compost all my garbage at home, something I strongly recommend to try to avoid so much garbage.
In 2050 we will be ten billion people in the world and we have to be consistent with our consumption so that the next generations can survive.
Finally Laura, can you tell us about your plans for the future in relation to the sea, do you have any new projects on the horizon?
I always have projects in mind, and a lot of desire to embark.
Next year we will probably make a new documentary in a totally unique and unexplored area, I will keep you informed through my networks:
https://www.instagram.com/laura_madrueno/
And hopefully soon I will also fulfill another of my dreams: to make an expedition to Antarctica.
From “Bluewater Sailors” we thank Laura Madrueño for her collaboration in this interesting interview. There is a lot of work to do to take care of the oceans and its marine fauna, and Laura with her exciting book “ Somos agua” and all the team of “We are water films” is doing an excellent job that serves to raise awareness to all of us, and to contribute our bit.
Good luck Laura in your next projects.
