Grant: 26-046E
Project Title: Inspiring Stewardship and Environmental Action in the Archie Carr Refuge
Project Manager: Sarah Rhodes-Ondi
Organization: Sea Turtle Conservancy (Non-Profit Organization)
Grant Amount: $26,667.00
Completion Date:
Summary: The Brevard Barrier Island Center (BIC), located in the heart of the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge on the east coast of Florida, has a responsibility to train the next generation of stewards of sea turtles and their critical nesting habitat. In 2022, STC launched a Sea Turtle School (STS) STEM Outreach program to provide additional opportunities for attendees to be empowered to innovate solutions to sea turtle threats. These programs show strong learning outcomes and conservation behavior shifts. In 2024, STC successfully launched a new program during the school year, the STC Action Ambassadors (STCAA) to reach middle schoolers and teens, ages 11-18 yrs. This project will provide support for the STC Community Stewardship Coordinator and a CCTP intern to lead the third year of the STCAA program and for support for the intern to teach STS and the STS STEM Outreach Program as needed. The STCAA, based on the Community Action Projects for the Environment (CAPE) model produced by UF IFAS, will train teens in the steps to succeed in collaborative projects that create systemic change to conserve sea turtles and their habitats. Issues the STCAA may address include lighting hazards, trash removal or prevention, water quality, dune stabilization, and boat strikes. All of these programs build the future stewards of the Archie Carr Refuge by training the next generation in the skills needed to conserve sea turtles and their habitats.
Results: