Lisa Campbell: Turtle diary
By Monte Bagall
DURHAM, NC -- Lisa Campbell studies turtle conservation, which involves more than the animals.
Working in countries such as Costa Rica, she also studies the people who visit turtle nesting sites as tourists or conservators, as well as those who collect the reptiles for their eggs, meat or shells.
"Most sea turtles nest in areas of the developing world where livelihood options are really limited," she said. "So I always have this instinct that, yes, these turtles are charismatic species that we would hate to lose. But how can we think of local people as evil turtle eaters and just save all the turtles for tourists?
"When you're working with biologists who have spent their lives committed to the survival of the species, it really brings you up front with some of your underlying values. One of those on my list is how we feel about what's right and wrong environmentally."
Newly arrived from Canada to become the Rachel Carson Assistant Professor of Marine Affairs and Policy at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment at Earth Sciences, Campbell will be grappling with such issues as a resident social scientist on the Duke Marine Laboratory faculty.
While social scientists are sometimes listed separately from "hard" scientists such as biologists, Campbell rejects the "hard-soft" distinction because she thinks what she does "is hardly soft. The demands of rigor and validity apply equally in both."
"I have invested a lot of time in my understanding of marine turtle biology," she added. "A big focus of my work is trying to place what I do into the broader scientific community. I think social scientists and natural scientists have to work together."
She is especially proud of her selection as a member of the Marine Turtle Specialist Group of the World Conservation Union. "There are few social scientists in that organization of a couple hundred people," she said.
Raised in a rural setting in the Ottawa Valley, Campbell's early exposure to coastal environments were limited to summer holidays at her grandparents' home in Nova Scotia.
Her initial interests as an undergraduate in McMaster University's arts and science program were development institutions. In fact, while attending McMaster, she also worked as a program assistant at the Canadian International Development Agency.
That interest continued as she studied for her master's degree in geography and environmental studies at the University of Toronto and also became an international development agency consultant.
Her initial focus as a graduate student was on "how development agencies dealt with the environment." Then, when working on her Ph.D. in geography at the University of Cambridge in England, her focus shifted to "how international conservation organizations looked at development," she said.
Having a graduate focus on geography was "a good discipline to look at the issues I was interested in," she added. "Geography programs in Canada tend to pick up environmental studies and environmental science programs. They end up being good places to look at human-environment interactions."
As an assistant professor in the geography department at the University of Western Ontario, Campbell did field work in various United Kingdom territories in the Caribbean in addition to Costa Rica.
Her interdisciplinary research has involved snorkeling inspections of coral reefs in search for Hawksbill turtles. At the same time, biologists "have been participating in a really large socio-economic survey that we're trying to do with different user groups that have a stake in marine turtle populations," she said.
"Marine-protected areas are one of the big focuses of my work," she added. "I'll probably continue to work in that field, along with how to accommodate human need within the context of a globally valued resource."
Campbell said she was invited to apply for her new post and "very pleased to get the job offer." She expects to work with three other turtle specialists and director Mike Orbach, who is himself a social scientist who studies fishermen.
She has already started seeking out new sources of research funding. Another challenge will be adapting her research to a new region.
"I want to get to know the area and get to know the issues before I jump in and declare myself to be the expert in conservation policy on the North Carolina coast," she said.
She is pleased to be teaching much smaller classes than the 50 students at a time she had at Western Ontario.
"I really like teaching," she said. "It's very refreshing, and it's a mutually beneficial relationship. Students bring new information and new ideas to the table."
Campbell, who likes kayaking, canoeing, cooking and "probably too much fiction," found herself making an early adjustment to North Carolina's summer weather. Perhaps her Caribbean field experiences helped.
"I do like a real winter," she said. "But when I was home in Canada packing and moving, I was freezing the whole time."
