Vermilion Sea Institute
Empowering communities for a sustainable future
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Aventureros
Aventureros is a youth program in the town of Bahia de Los Angeles in Baja California, Mexico. There is no cost for children or families to participate. The objective is to help local youth develop an interest in conservation and the natural world to prepare them to make future choices that protect local species, preserve their marine environment, and if applicable, use safe and sustainable fishing practices
The Aventureros are a group of young “ecowarriors” who eagerly team up with local and international conservation efforts to learn about, participate in, and promote one another’s missions. They have contributed to ongoing research on whale sharks with VSI, sea turtles with Grupo Tortuguero , microplastics with The Big Microplastic Survey. In these instances Aventureros are often trained citizen scientists who contribute local data to worldwide research efforts. The Aventureros have also worked with ProNatura and the Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas to learn and grow local conservation efforts.
Despite the incredible biodiversity in the area, local youth have traditionally had very limited access to the waters of the Sea of Cortez outside of fishing. Recognizing that access to the study of this environment and species should not be limited to stationed and visiting scientists, VSI created Aventureros to help local youth and teens discover Bahia’s marine and terrestrial ecosystems, learn how humans impact these ecosystems, and most specifically, learn deeply about whale sharks and the work that goes into protecting this endangered species. To achieve these purposes, young people living in Bahia are invited to participate in programs concurrently with visiting scientists, participate in data collection, and help design educational activities. Additionally, a structured curriculum is actively being created by a team of volunteer educators and scientists, to support these students throughout the school year, and to offer enrichment activities during the summer months.
Stars to Sea
The Wildbook for Whale Sharks project aims to combine innovative technology that applies spot pattern recognition algorithms – used by astronomers to recognize celestial patterns in the night sky – to identify individual whale sharks via their unique, behind-the-gill spots. Through a week-long field-based program, VSI seeks to provide an incredible educational experience for volunteers who will learn how to correctly capture photographs of whale sharks visiting Bahia de los Angeles, upload these photos to whaleshark.org, and help share the project findings with the local community and beyond.
Where we work
Awards
1st place - Project of Ecological Merit 2021
Natural Protected Area of Bahía de los Ángeles/CONANP
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Community members, students, professionals, educators, scientists, visitors
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Paper surveys, Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Case management notes, Community meetings/Town halls, Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve,
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What significant change resulted from feedback?
Based on constituent need, we recently added 3 additional bilingual mentors to educational leadership team.
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our funders, Our community partners,
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How has asking for feedback from the people you serve changed your relationship?
We have a long history of empowering people of all ages to be involved in decision making processes. We recently started including youth representatives in strategic/planning meetings for educational programs. Learning from the youth perspective has been transformational for instructors and has empowered the youth to authentically engage in decision making and buy-in to outcomes.
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded,
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time,
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Vermilion Sea Institute
Board of directorsas of 02/04/2023
T'Noya Thompson
North American Association for Environmental Education
Term: 2020 -
Aaron Hirsh
University of Colorado
Veronica Volny
Meadow Lark Farm DInners
Joshua Maximon
Mann & Maximon Attorneys At Law
Joseph F. Kennedy
UCSD Extension
D. Graham Burnett
Princeton University
Olivia Walton
Cornell University
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/28/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.