The Team

Lori Marino
Dr. Lori Marino is a neuroscientist, internationally known for her work on the evolution of the brain and intelligence in dolphins, whales, primates and farmed animals.

Charles Vinick
Charles brings extensive experience in business, ocean policy, environmental policy, project management and government relations to his role as Executive Director.

David Phillips
David Phillips is Executive Director of the Earth Island Institute. He founded the Free Willy Keiko Foundation, and directs the International Marine Mammal Project.

Naomi Rose
Naomi Rose is the marine mammal scientist for the Animal Welfare Institute in Washington, DC., specializing in issues regarding cetacean live capture, trade and captivity.

Carl Safina
Carl Safina is best known for lyrical non-fiction writing. His work explores how we are changing the natural world and what the changes mean for human and non-human beings.

Don Baur
Donald C. Baur is a partner in the law firm of Perkins Coie. He has served as General Counsel of the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission, and he teaches ocean and coastal law.

Jeffrey Foster
Jeff Foster has worked in all facets of the marine mammal field including capture, animal husbandry, training, rehabilitation, research and reintroduction.

Michael Mountain
Michael Mountain is the former President of Best Friends Animal Society and one of the pioneers of the no-kill movement for abused and abandoned companion animals.

Michael Parks
Captain Michael Parks is leading the search for suitable sites for a seaside sanctuary. He served as chief of marine operations for the rehabilitation of the orca Keiko.

Diane Richards
Diane is the former Director of Development at Marine Applied Research and Exploration. Her background combines fundraising with science communications.

Liv Baker
Liv Baker is the animal welfare research fellow at the Centre for Compassionate Conservation at the University of Technology of Sydney, Australia.

Giovanni Bearzi
Giovanni Bearzi, President of Dolphin Biology and Conservation, Italy, has been studying and trying to protect Mediterranean cetaceans since 1986.

Maddalena Bearzi
Maddalena Bearzi is President of the Ocean Conservation Society, and has been studying the ecology of marine mammals with a strong conservation bias since 1990.

Samantha Berg
Samantha Berg worked for three years as a trainer of killer whales and other marine mammals at SeaWorld Orlando. She is co-owner of the Alaska Center for Acupuncture,

David Casselman
Attorney David Casselman has handled many animal related cases, including the highly publicized litigation over the premature deaths of elephants at the Los Angeles Zoo.

Shilpi Chhotray
Shilpi Chhotray is an ocean advocate and social entrepreneur with 10 years of experience related to marine science and policy.

Jean-Michel Cousteau
Jean-Michel Cousteau is a dedicated advocate for the protection of the water planet, inspiring and educating audiences worldwide about the need to preserve ocean ecosystems.

Chuck Davis
From the freezing climes of Antarctica to the heat of the Amazon, Chuck Davis has worked for nearly 40 years as a specialist in marine photography and cinematography.

Mica Day
Mica Day is our social media coordinator and a passionate advocate for animal rights, with a background in community and online fundraising.

Catherine Doyle
Catherine Doyle is the director of science, research and advocacy for the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), which cares for captive wild and exotic animals.

Chris Draper
Chris Draper is a zoologist and chartered biologist, working for the Born Free Foundation on their Zoo Check program, investigating the welfare of wild animals in captivity.

Sara Dubois
Sara Dubois is Chief Scientific Officer for the British Columbia SPCA, where she directs province-wide welfare science operations, education and advocacy projects.

Michelle Duncan
Michelle Duncan is the Founder of Duncan GIS, which provides geographic information services to help people organize, analyze and visualize their data.

Sylvia Earle
Oceanographer, explorer and author Sylvia Earle has served as a field research scientist, government official, and director for several corporations and non-profits.

Toni Frohoff
Toni Frohoff is a wildlife behavioral biologist specializing in marine mammals. She is currently the staff scientist for cetaceans and elephants for In Defense of Animals.

Pierre Gallego
Pierre Gallego is a veterinarian specializing in marine mammal medicine. He is President of Odyssea, a marine mammal research and conservation organization in Luxembourg.

Joan Gonzalvo
Joan Gonzalvo is a biologist whose main research interest is the study and conservation of cetaceans. He is a member of the board of the Tethys Research Institute.

David Hancocks
David Hancocks, a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, specializes in exhibit design for zoos, botanic gardens, nature centers and natural history museums.

Terry Hardie
Terry Hardie is the chief field researcher for the Orca Research Trust, which works to protect orca and their habitat through conservation, education and scientific research.

John Hargrove
John Hargrove trained and swam with orcas at SeaWorld parks for 14 years. Today, he works in Europe with the Born Free Foundation and the World Cetacean Alliance.

Steve Huxter
Steve was head of the animal care division at Sealand of the Pacific and oversaw operations at the Victoria Marine Animal Rescue Centre. He now promotes animal rights causes.

Michael Jasny
Michael Jasny is a Senior Policy Analyst and Director of NRDC’s Marine Mammal Protection Project and an expert in the law and policy of ocean noise pollution.

John Jett
John Jett is a research professor at Stetson University and former marine mammal trainer at SeaWorld of Florida, has co-authored several papers on killer whales in captivity.

Ron Kagan
Ron Kagan is the CEO of the Detroit Zoological Society and an advocate for compassionate conservation, animal welfare, and humane education.

Catherine Kinsman
Catherine Kinsman is co-Founder of the Whale Stewardship Project. She co-initiated the world’s first long-term study of human-whale interactive behavior for this species.

Curt Lahti
Captain Curt Lahti has spent his life on and around the sea on tugboats, sailboats and private yachts, as well as with ship building companies.

Rob Laidlaw
Rob Laidlaw is Director of Zoocheck and has also worked for the World Society for the Protection of Animals, Toronto Humane Society and other animal protection organizations.

Katy Laveck
Katy Laveck is a marine mammal field researcher with expertise in rescue and rehab projects with sea turtles and marine mammals, and with large whale disentanglements.

Sandro Mazzariol
Sandro Mazzariol is a veterinary pathologist and coordinator of the National Stranding Network in Italy. He has served as a member of the International Whaling Commission.

Elizabeth Oriel
Elizabeth Oriel is a conservation biologist and social scientist, and founder of the Cohabitation Institute, which promotes positive cohabitation with nonhuman animals.

Michael Partica
Michael Partica worked as part of the Back to the Blue project, which resulted in the successful release of two dolphins off the coast of Turkey.

Heather Rally
Dr. Heather Rally is a wildlife veterinarian with specific training in marine mammal medicine, currently working as a veterinarian with the PETA Foundation.

Carol Ray
Carol Ray worked for three years training cetaceans at SeaWorld of Florida. She is the owner/director of three pediatric speech therapy clinics in the Seattle area.

Adam Roberts
Adam M. Roberts is former CEO of Born Free USA and the Born Free Foundation, and serves on the board of directors of the Species Survival Network.

Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara
Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara is a marine conservation ecologist and the Chairman and Director of the Tethys Research Institute.

Ed Stewart
Ed Stewart is the President and Co-Founder with Pat Derby of the Performing Animal Welfare Society and its 2,300-acre captive wildlife sanctuary.

Matthew Spiegl
Matthew Spiegl is an attorney, environmental blogger and ocean advocate with a focus on the health of the ocean.

Paul Spong
Paul Spong is co-director of OrcaLab, a land based whale research station on Hanson Island in British Columbia, and president of the Pacific Orca Society.

Kathryn Sussman
Kathryn Sussman, founder of The Writing Space, focuses on animal advocacy and works with Zoocheck to help bring an end to the captive display of cetaceans.

Helena Symonds
Helena Symonds is Co-Director of the orca research station OrcaLab on Hanson Island, and a director of the non-profit Pacific Orca Society.

Gia Brazil Vacin
With expertise in environmental science and management, Gia has worked with more than 70 groups, including The Nature Conservancy and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Courtney Vail
Courtney provides consulting services to animal welfare and environmental organizations. She is the former Campaigns and Programs Manager for Whale & Dolphin Conservation.

Jeffrey Ventre
Jeffrey Ventre is a medical doctor in Washington State who formerly worked as a marine mammal trainer at SeaWorld, spending eight years with cetaceans and pinnipeds.

Kimberly Ventre
Kimberly Ventre is a brand consultant, specializing in brand identity, marketing operations, conservation marketing and impact production.

Ingrid Visser
Ingrid is the Founder and Principal Scientist of the Orca Research Trust, which works to protect orca through conservation, education and scientific research.

Hal Whitehead
Hal's research focuses on social organization and cultural transmission in the deep-water whales, and on their ecology, population biology and conservation.

Cathy Williamson
Cathy leads the End Captivity program at Whale and Dolphin Conservation, helping to defend these remarkable creatures against the many threats they face.