LMC Blue Staff Member of the Year Finalists:
Lindsay French - Juno Beach, Florida
As a leader and experienced environmental educator, I understand the qualities necessary to drive transformative change in the EE field. Lindsay consistently offers creative and collaborative solutions, shares insightful input at any decision-making table, shows a strong commitment to environmental conservation, and is a kind, compassionate person.
Her former role as a shark scientist and outreach specialist put her in a unique position to hone her ability to break down dispositional barriers, such as fear of sharks, and instead illuminate the importance of conservation. These soft skills seem effortless for Lindsay as she now leads a team of six educators and communicates ocean conservation messaging to all ages in the classroom, in the field, on campus, and virtually. At LMC, her expertise in EE is evidenced by her significant impact on students and their families, particularly those from underserved communities. Lindsay plays a key role in implementing LMC’s Oceans of Opportunity initiative, a multi-faceted program that offers scholarships and free support services to underserved communities and Title I Schools.
In 2021 alone, Lindsay coordinated Oceans of Opportunity programming to 10,000+ students. This is by no means the extent of Lindsay’s impact on environmental education; Lindsay was instrumental in the development of LMC’s open-access Virtual Coastal Classroom, the curriculum development of LMC’s Diving into Ocean Exploration virtual reality experience for out-of-school time practitioners, management of LMC’s 450- camper Junior Marine Biologist Summer Camp, and is active in the Florida Marine Science Educators Association (FMSEA). Lindsay deeply understands both the knowledge and critical thinking needed to solve some of our planet’s toughest environmental concerns as well as possesses the ability to authentically connect and teach others.
In July 2022, Lindsay was named Environmental Education 30 Under 30 by the North American Association of Environmental Educators (NAAEE). More information can be found here: naaee.org/eepro/people/lindsay-french
Dr. Justin Perrault - Juno Beach, Florida
Soon after graduating with his PhD in Integrative Biology from Florida Atlantic University, Justin left the east coast of Florida for several years to pursue his postdoctoral training at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota. During and immediately after completing his postdoc, Justin worked as a professor at the University of South Florida, where he taught students about the Earth’s inhabitants and how to protect them. He was later recruited by LMC’s veterinarian to become their new Director of Research. LMC is situated on the most densely nested loggerhead beach in the Western Hemisphere. Since he began at LMC in 2017, he and his team have monitored and protected over 100,000 sea turtle nests and tagged over 1,600 nesting turtles on LMC-monitored beaches.
Justin recognizes that conserving sea turtles is far more than just “simply” publishing manuscripts, however, he has published nearly 60 papers, 45 of which came out after he started at LMC. His research and reputation expands far beyond Juno Beach. LMC has truly become a research hub, with visiting scientists coming every year from many different areas to work with and learn from him.
He was later recruited by LMC’s veterinarian to become their new Director of Research. LMC is situated on the most densely nested loggerhead beach in the Western Hemisphere. Since he began at LMC in 2017, he and his team have monitored and protected over 100,000 sea turtle nests and tagged over 1,600 nesting turtles on LMC-monitored beaches. Justin recognizes that conserving sea turtles is far more than just “simply” publishing manuscripts, however, he has published nearly 60 papers, 45 of which came out after he started at LMC. His research and reputation expands far beyond Juno Beach. LMC has truly become a research hub, with visiting scientists coming every year from many different areas to work with and learn from him. At the request of his colleagues at NOAA, Upwell (a California nonprofit), and Nelson Mandela University, Justin will be traveling to California and South Africa to assist with and train scientists using his techniques to improve upon their research projects involving endangered leatherback turtles later this year. His work is not limited to publications in scientific journals. Justin co-wrote three Florida House bills entitled “Improving Water Quality and Coastline Cleanliness.” All three bills passed and were funded by the Florida legislature.
He brought his understanding of the mechanisms of environmental toxins to help determine the effectiveness of intravenous lipid emulsion (ILE) treatment of brevetoxicosis (the red tide effect). This study showed that when using ILE to treat symptoms of red tide poisoning in sea turtles, survival improved by nearly 50% over more traditional treatment methods. Individuals around the world are now using this therapy successfully to treat toxicoses of numerous origins in not only sea turtles, but seabirds and marine mammals. Justin recognizes the importance of sharing research and his knowledge through educational venues that span very diverse ages and training levels. He gives public lectures for the Education Department’s collaborative partners (including Rotary Clubs, Google, Audubon Society, Florida’s Natural History Museum, and more). Most notably, Justin took part in a 2021 BBC documentary called “The Year the Earth Changed” narrated by David Attenborough which outlines how the behavior of animals dramatically changed due to the lockdowns the world faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. It shows how impactful humans have been on animal habitats, how remarkably resilient animals are in returning to their natural activities and is proof positive that we really can make a difference in the lives of animals with immediate effect. This program has recently been given an Emmy Honors Award for harnessing the power of TV to drive change.
Award Recipient
Jennifer Reilly - Juno Beach, Florida
On top of managing a large team, Jen is responsible for the oversight of a nesting program that is one of the busiest in the world. This year alone, she and her team have documented over 18,000 sea turtle nests (the third highest year on record for our local beaches). During the COVID-19 shutdowns in 2020, she and one other seasonal employee ran the morning survey program for three months without any additional assistance, as part-time employees were furloughed.
Jen has been involved in data collection documenting the positive impacts that the COVID-related beach closures had on nesting loggerheads and the negative effects of seawalls on nesting success of sea turtles on our local beaches. She is integral to collecting and analyzing long-term datasets that help us better understand how human activities impact sea turtles and shape conservation efforts of our local sea turtle populations.
Perhaps one of Jen’s greatest accomplishments is her outreach efforts to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH). Being deaf herself, Jen has a passion for sharing her conservation efforts to other individuals in her community. At LMC, we always strive to diversify our reach, targeting new audiences that may have not had the opportunities to learn about ocean conservation. Jen has developed and implemented several education programs aimed at reaching the DHH community. Jen leads public guided tours at the facility during the day and offers night-time turtle walks for DHH individuals. Most recently, Jen attended the Deaf Nation World Expo in Las Vegas. There, she presented to an audience of over 5,000 individuals about her work with sea turtles. She described the experience as overwhelming yet exciting, and her presentation generated so much interest that she was asked to stay on stage to answer questions after her talk, despite running over time. She is reaching audiences that were often once overlooked.The success of our Research Department would not be where it is today without her. She has become an activist and conservationist during her time at LMC.