ECCN Background

When was ECCN established?

ECCN was founded in 1990 as a grass roots effort to identify whale and dolphin species of the Eastern Caribbean. From 1990-1997, the facility was housed at the Museum of Antigua and Barbuda. As of June 1998, ECCN's educational outreach programmes will be housed at the Marine Education and Research Center in Bequia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Funding and Support

ECCN is grateful for contributions of support and funds from the following organizations: Caribbean Conservation Association, Cetacean Society International, International Fund for Animal Welfare, Save the Manatee Club, Plymouth Marine Mammal Research Center, Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. Additional affiliations and endorsements by the United Nations Environmental Programme (Kingston, Jamaica) and the Smithsonian Institute (Washington, D.C.).

Director

Nathalie Ward, PhD, a marine biologist, is founder and Director of ECCN. She has been studying humpback whales in the Caribbean for more than twenty years; served as a UNEP consultant for the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) Protocol model national legislation workshops; and, authored field guides and several children's books about marine protected areas and marine mammals.

Support Staff

Andrea Bogomolni is a Research Associate at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Assistant Director and Database Coordinator for ECCN. Her research is focused on understanding zoonotic disease prevalence and transmission in marine mammals and seabirds. Much of her research over the last seven years involves working with stranded marine mammals in the Cape Cod, MA area.

Volunteer Network

ECCN representatives are currently based in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadaloupe, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinadad and Tobago
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Copyright © 2007
Eastern Caribbean Cetacean Network
All Rights Reserved.