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Application <br />Please email back to rmott@inwater.org no later than June 24th, 5pm <br />Organization Name Indian River Sea Turtle Program (IRC Habitat Conservation Plan) <br />Address 1801 27th Street, Vero Beach 32960 <br />Contact Name Kendra Cope - HCP Coordinator <br />Contact Phone 772-538-0616 <br />Contact Email kcope@ircgov.com <br />Organization's mission: <br />Our HCP is specific to improving nesting habitat for sea turtles "When fully implemented <br />the HCP will increase productivity of the County's beaches". Staff have decided one of <br />the most important ways of accomplishing this goal is through education of public young and old. <br />Number of education staff 1 staff (myself) and up to 15 volunteers <br />School district(s) you plan to reach with this program: <br />Indian River County <br />public and private schools <br />1. Why do you believe this program will benefit both your organization and your surrounding <br />schools? <br />Indian River County (IRC) is located in the middle of the most productive loggerhead nesting beach area in the U.S. <br />and Western Hemisphere. All residents of IRC live only up to 15 minutes from a beach no matter where their home <br />may be, yet many to not know any of the ecological treasures this place has to offer. Our beaches are beginning to <br />be over developed, surrounded by lights and buried in trash. The county has eight title one schools and during their <br />3rd and 4th grade years students form these schools and others make visits to the Environmental Learning Center t( <br />discover the IR Lagoon, but nothing is planned for 5th grade students to help expand their coastal education. Before <br />the 15/16 school year only 2 schools openly reported adding sea turtle information in their curriculum, organized <br />beach clean ups or made other conservation efforts with their 5th grade students. Everyone knows that childrLm are <br />some of the most influential people in the world and still have passion and a drive to make their surrounding area <br />better. If 5th graders were offered a hands on opportunity to learn more about their coastal environment and the <br />keystone species that utilize it, like sea turtles, then they would be the ones with the energy to improve conservation <br />efforts for the future. One of the ways the county began making efforts to biologically improve their coastline is <br />though the implementation of the Habitat Conservation Plan, specifically designed to improve nesting habitat for sea <br />turtles. The HCP was implemented in 2005 and in 2015 the HCP coordinator expanded the management program tc <br />include education and public outreach using multiple venues. If accepted for the traveling trunk program the county <br />will be able to enhance its education program which is full of volunteers eager to help inform the public of the human <br />impacts sea turtle face and ways they can get involved in local conservation. <br />182 <br />