Dr. Valeria Pizarro:Dr. Pizarro began studying corals and their population dynamics as part of her M.S. at the National University of Colombia in 1999. She continued to study coral reefs while designing and implementing the Seaflower Marine Protected Area System. She then went on to doctoral studies on Caribbean coral connectivity at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom. After earning her Ph.D., Valeria became a professor at Jorge Tadeo University in Colombia, where she continued to study reefs for eight years. Coral restoration became part of her work in 2007 and she has since worked on Caribbean and Colombian Pacific reefs. In 2020, Valeria joined the Perry Institute for Marine Science in The Bahamas as the manager of their coral program where most of her current effort is focused on Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease. Valeria also has extensive experience in coastal marine ecosystems like mangroves and seagrasses, and is interested in marine policy, community engagement and biodiversity offsets.

K-12 Resources: K-12 Extension Activities

Spring Series Schedule:

Mar. 1 – Oceanic Whitetip Shark Research & Conservation

Apr. 5 – Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease in the Caribbean

May 3 – Discovery of Potential Cancer Therapeutics From Marine Organisms