Mariam Daudi ’03 has been monitoring nesting leatherback sea turtles in Costa Rica with a team of research scientists and volunteers since January. The Scripps alumna was awarded an Earthwatch grant to help save the sea turtles from extinction at one of the most important remaining nesting beaches. Grants from the institute support doctoral and post-doctoral researchers, or researchers with equivalent scholarship or life experience.
Each night on the beaches of Guanacaste, Costa Rica, Daudi and other team members monitor the turtles, measure and tag them, record the nest position, and count eggs to determine which factors influence nesting success. The scientists and volunteers also help protect the scampering, sea-bound hatchlings.
The Earthwatch Institute is an international nonprofit organization that supports scholarly field research in the biological, physical, social, and cultural sciences. The organization raises approximately $15 million a year to provide scientists with research funding and labor. Through its model of participant funding, Earthwatch recruits non-specialist volunteers from the public to collectively share the costs of research projects and join supported scientists as field assistants. By offering volunteers the opportunity to join scientists on short-term research expeditions worldwide, Earthwatch engages people in the process of scientific research. Volunteers help researchers collect data, record observations, and perform many other research tasks.
The institute’s mission is to engage people in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for sustainable conservation of the Earth’s natural resources and cultural heritage. Earthwatch supports research of underrepresented people, such as early-career scientists and women in science. Dr. Fiona S. Tweed of Staffordshire University says: “Earthwatch is unique in many ways, and perhaps some of the most apparent is the organization’s ability to dismantle the perceived barriers of gender and culture in science…In funding women as researchers on projects, Earthwatch is widening participation and reinforcing the perception of women as active players.”