Cynthia Barile
Growing up in the south-east of France, Cynthia has been a child of the sea, dreaming about the big blue and its gentle giants for as long as she can remember. Fuelled by this passion she quickly started diving, yet her academic path was going in a different direction. After graduating with a BSc in Neurosciences, she initiated a project on Parkinson’s disease in Canada. But she was longing for the sea, and her childhood dream started to come to life when she joined the international MSc in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation (EMBC+) and studied cetaceans for her master’s thesis, back in 2017. Since then she strives to promote and be involved in conservation, education and outreach initiatives while carrying out her research. Cynthia is a PhD student in the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology in Ireland, where she uses acoustic data to better understand the habitat preferences of deep-diving cetaceans and provide information to improve their conservation and protection from anthropogenic activities. Close to the animals, a camera in hand is where she is the happiest, so she takes every opportunity to be on the field, collect data, take pictures and regularly works as a MMO, PAM operator and naturalistic guide.
Fiona Cummins
As a child and teenager Fiona grew up in North County Dublin and Monaghan. She loved being outside in nature, on excursions to the beach, climbing trees or exploring fields that she wasn’t supposed to be in. She always knew that she wanted to work in an environment where she could maintain that connection to the outdoors. This led her to pursue a joint Zoology and Cell Biology degree in University College Dublin. For her final year research project, she spent six weeks in Welgevonden game reserve in South Africa collecting data on elephant herd behaviour. After graduating, she spent a year working in administration, following which she was part of the first cohort of students who undertook the MSc in Conservation Behaviour in GMIT. It was during this masters that she fell for marine mammal conservation work, particularly using acoustic research methods. After gaining experience in both research and commercial Marine Mammal Observation work, she started a PhD in the MFRC, GMIT. Her research is on the harbour porpoise population in Dublin Bay, using both visual and acoustic data to investigate habitat use and the effect of human activities on this important coastal species.
María Pérez Tadeo
Always passionate about nature and wildlife, María was aware at an early age about the damage we were inflicting upon the environment and the need to protect it. A strong desire to be involved in conservation combined with a thirst for knowledge about the ocean and its wildlife led her to study a BSc in Marine Sciences and an international MSc in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation. Regularly working as a Marine Mammal Observer, María is currently a PhD student at the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology in Ireland. Her research project focuses on the population assessment of grey (Halichoerus grypus) and harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) on the west coast of Ireland, through a combination of non-invasive methods such as behaviour, acoustic, UAVs techniques, and photo-identification. The outcomes of this research will be used to provide policy advice and help Ireland meet legislative obligations in relation to the conservation and management of these species. She does believe that it is time to move forward to ensure a better future in marine mammal conservation.
Morgane Pommier
Morgane grew up in the north-west of France, in Normandy and in Brittany, in any case always close to the sea. Hooked by nature and wildlife documentaries, and inspired by committed and passionate people as a kid, she knew very early she wanted to study sciences, dreaming to later become a biologist. After developing a strong interest in the understanding and protection of marine ecosystems, she joined the IMBRSea master program and travelled Europe to specialise in applied marine ecology and conservation. Enthusiastic about top predators ecology and drawn to its application towards conservation, she started her PhD at the MFRC as part of the SeaMonitor project (INTERREG VA funded). Her work, relying on passive acoustic data acquired from static receivers and glider deployments, focuses on modelling cetacean distribution and habitat-use between Malin Head (Ireland) and Islay (Scotland), as well as monitoring noise and potential disturbances in the area. Always willing to share her passion and engage with people, Morgane strives to take part in outreach and science communication activities, in the hope she can contribute to raise awareness and advocate for ocean conservation.
Dr. Joanne O'Brien
Joanne is a Researcher/Lecturer at the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology on the Applied Freshwater and Marine Biology degree, as well as the Conservation Behaviour and IMBRSea MSc programmes. Since 2004, she has carried out numerous offshore and inshore marine mammal visual and acoustic surveys onboard the state research vessels. She was work-package leader on the PReCAST project, responsible for Static and Passive acoustic monitoring. She was PI on an EPA funded project assessing Ocean Noise in Irish waters 2011-2013 and the ObSERVE Acoustic project (2015-2018) and currently SeaMonitor and Corncrake Life. Her research interests are marine mammals, bioacoustics, effects of anthropogenic noise, soundscapes and habitat modelling but is also actively involved in acoustic research across a range of freshwater and terrestrial species.