Our Host, the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, is pleased to announce a very special presentation called "Sea Turtles and the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill" presented by Dr. Cynthia Smith, National Marine Mammal Foundation and Dr. Brian Stacy, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries.
Dr. Cynthia Smith has served as the Executive Director for the National Marine Mammal Foundation (NMMF) since 2010 and as Director of Medicine since 2009. In her role as Executive Director, Smith provides leadership to the NMMF team, guides nonprofit development, and oversees scientific advancement. Her vision for the NMMF is to grow the organization into a world-renowned national marine mammal center that strives to continuously advance medicine and science, enhance marine mammal conservation efforts, and provide humanitarian services. She leads a team of more than sixty staff, including veterinarians, scientists, behaviorists, technicians, and educators - all working toward a mission to protect the health and life of marine mammals, humans, and the oceans.
Dr. Smith obtained her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Tufts University, during which time she also completed a veterinary thesis in aquatic biomedicine through collaboration with the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole. She then completed an internship in aquatic animal medicine at the New England Aquarium, followed by a National Research Council fellowship in collaboration with the Navy Marine Mammal Program. She has also completed Executive Education coursework in nonprofit strategic management at the Harvard Business School and financial stewardship at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Dr. Brian Stacy is a veterinarian with NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources, National Sea Turtle Program and a board-certified pathologist. He obtained his DVM from the University of Georgia, completed a joint residency at the University of California, Davis and San Diego Zoo, and received his PhD from the University of Florida. He works on a variety of health and mortality-related issues in support of sea turtle conservation and recovery, including causes of strandings, human impacts on protected marine species, health and disease studies, and in-water research. He regularly provides veterinary and diagnostic support for NOAA and other government agencies, stranding networks within the U.S. and abroad, and numerous rehabilitation facilities. He has been a veterinarian principally focused on wildlife for 15 years, a boarded pathologist for 11 years, and has worked intensively with sea turtles for 11 years.