Duke alumni and their families gathered in October 2024 at the Duke University Marine Lab in Beaufort, N.C., for the biannual Forever Learning Weekend, hosted by the Duke Alumni Engagement and Development Lifelong Learning team. These immersive experiences offer participants a hands-on exploration of North Carolina’s coastal ecosystems and the cutting-edge marine research taking place at Duke. Attendees delve into the fascinating world of marine mammals, with a special focus on blue whales—their biology, immense scale, and conservation challenges, and more. Each weekend provides Alumni the opportunity to engage in a range of experiences from piloting drones and engaging in photogrammetry exercises to measure whales in the wild, while gaining firsthand experience in modern research techniques.
In fall 2024, the weekend also featured lectures by Duke faculty members, who connected marine science and conservation to the Forever Learning Institute’s “Food for Thought” theme. The program began with a plenary lecture on “Who is Producing Food from the Ocean, and How?” and included a group project for the Commons Experience to deepen understanding of overfishing and ways to enhance conservation and sustainability efforts for marine life. LEARN MORE.