The sea turtle: what creature on Earth could be more majestic and beautiful? At least, that’s how CI’s Rod Mast felt the first time he stood on a Florida beach watching a loggerhead nest. Rod lost his heart to sea turtles that day, and ever since then he has been a passionate sea turtle conservationist. As director of the Sea Turtle Flagship Program for CI’s Center for Applied Biodiversity Science, Rod strives tirelessly to protect these unique, and uniquely threatened, marvels of nature.

In addition to his turtle-related pursuits Rod has been instrumental in CI’s regional programs, founding and overseeing CI's efforts in Colombia, Madagascar, Botswana, and helping to launch the Papua New Guinea/Melanesia, Brazil and the Guianas programs. Also noteworthy was his involvement in the 1997 launch Global Amphibian Campaign, which has since become the Global Amphibian Assessment. As head of CI’s Sojourns program, Rod is dedicated to giving others life-changing experiences, just as his life was changed forever on that Florida beach.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

Sea turtles: It’s hard to imagine a human being who is more deeply involved with sea turtles. Rod is the former president of the International Sea Turtle Society and serves as co-chair of the IUCN-SSC Marine Turtle Specialist Group, and was the host of the XXIV Sea Turtle Symposium in San Jose, Costa Rica. He’s even been known to dress up as a sea turtle on certain special occasions.