The Alabama Coastal Foundation and Share the Beach, Alabama’s sea turtle nest monitoring and conservation program, are gearing up for the 2020 season. Share the Beach has a new director of the program. Also upcoming are the Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network’s annual volunteer training sessions.
Sara Johnson joins ACF as the new director of Share the Beach. She steps into the role after 10 years as a volunteer and team leader for the program, along with administrative credentials from her previous position at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. “I am comfortable and familiar with the ins and outs of the program and what our nesting sea turtles, and volunteers, need for a successful program. Growing the program and bringing awareness to more businesses and residents along the Alabama Gulf Coast is one of my big goals,” shares Johnson.
Closely related to Share the Beach, though not directly a part of that program, is the Alabama Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network (AL-STSSN). The Stranding Network’s purpose is to respond to dead, sick and injured sea turtles along Alabama’s beaches and waterways. They will be holding their annual volunteer training sessions to renew certification for returning volunteers and train new volunteers on how to respond to stranding calls.
Trainings will take place Wednesday, March 11, at 5 p.m. in the Education Building in Gulf State Park, Gulf Shores; Monday, March 16, at 5 p.m. in Galathea Hall at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Dauphin Island; and Wednesday, March 25, at 1 p.m. at the City of Orange Beach Community Development Building, Orange Beach.
The Alabama Coastal Foundation is dedicated to preserving and sharing Alabama’s unique coastal environment through education and community involvement.
For more information about ACF and Share the Beach, visit www.joinacf.org.
For more information about AL-STSSN trainings, contact Lyndsey Howell at Lyndsey.howell@noaa.gov.
