SEA TURTLE OVERSIGHT PROTECTION INC
S.T.O.P. - Resist Extinction
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Incorrect coastal lighting causes sea turtle hatchings to go towards the City instead of to the sea!
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Hatchling Rescue and Disorientation Documentation
Turtle nesting season runs from March 1 to October 31. During this time, our volunteers are involved in permit-related conservation, preservation and documentation activities on the clock. This includes compiling data about nest locations; mapping the locations; and documenting disorientation events and educating the public at large. Our field volunteers use this data for their rescue and recovery efforts. Our administrative volunteers and local, state and federal governmental agencies use this data as a tool for enforcing better protection thresholds to reduce disorientation events for endangered sea turtle species.
For our field volunteers, this information enables them to be there when hatchlings emerge from a nest. If all goes well, our volunteers see a group of hatchlings going to the ocean. Unfortunately, as is often the case, our volunteers see disoriented hatchlings racing towards unlawful, artificial lighting and must intervene to rescue the hatchlings by collecting them, containing them in five gallon buckets, and documenting the artificial lighting sources that caused the disorientation. The hatchlings that are physically able to be released are released. Those that have suffered physical injury or trauma (i.e., broken flipper due to entanglement in fences or beach furniture; injury by predators including birds, crabs, and raccoons) are transported to a certified rehabilitation facility by our trained volunteers.
Public Education and Awareness Efforts
At present, our ability to do citizen education and outreach is with beachgoers, schools, businesses on the beach, community groups (i.e., Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, civic organizations), environmental fairs, media interviews, meetings with elected officials, and other outreach efforts.
Volunteer Training Efforts
Volunteers working under the FFWCC conservation permit are required to participate in a minimum of 4 hours of annual technical, classroom style training. Each new volunteer is also required to complete an initial 40 hours of supervised field training with a senior volunteer. During 2011, technical training was completed by 250 individuals and supervised field training was completed by 120 new volunteers. (Of the 250 people who participated in the classroom training, approximately 175 have completed both classroom and field training and serve as our core volunteers under the permits.)
This training is facilitated Richard WhiteCloud who has over 6 years of day-to-day experience in sea turtle conservation efforts and Dr. Kirt Rusenko, a Marine Conservationist with Gumbo Limbo Nature Center and meets FFWCC training guidelines and requirements.
Where we work
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of animals rescued
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Hatchling Rescue and Disorientation Documentation
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This includes sea turtles that were released into the ocean and ones that were taken to Gumbo Limbo Nature Center for care.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We aim to provide solutions, to balance the scales and give the hatchlings a chance to begin their life.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We help to educate the public by hosting sea turtle nesting habitat awareness and lighting workshops and offer presentations to schools, organizations and local businesses to increase sea turtle awareness. With our feet on the sand, we interact with tens of thousands of beach-goers each year during our nightly campaigns, providing them with helpful tips to avoid being a disturbance while on the nesting habitat. We also provide carefully controlled, guided eco-tours to reduce incidental interactions, that could have negative consequences for the animals.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
STOP rescues disoriented hatchlings as well as sick or injured juvenile and adult marine turtles in all of Broward County Florida; Deerfield Beach, Hillsboro Beach, Pompano, Lauderdale by the Sea, Fort Lauderdale, Dania, Hollywood, and Hallandale.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Our program has reduced the hatchling mortality rate by over 40% in Broward County. Our FWCC certified nighttime survey volunteers monitor sea turtle nests and count the number of hatchlings that emerge. Hatchlings that go east to the ocean are left alone. Hatchlings that disorient to lights are documented and recovered in buckets. Rescued hatchlings are released into the sea or taken to Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton. We record the data with mobile devices in real-time using the FORMS app from Device Magic and publish the results on an interactive map as a public service. Since 2007, STOP volunteers have bucketed over 240,000 hatchlings that disoriented to lights on Broward County beaches.
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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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.
SEA TURTLE OVERSIGHT PROTECTION INC
Board of directorsas of 08/23/2022
Tonia Fralin
Tona Fralin
Kirt Rusenko
Richard WhiteCloud
Heather Spangler
Joe Taverna
Melissa Alexander
Janet Ramos
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? Yes -
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? Yes -
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
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data