UVI Marine Scientists on the Way to Women’s Leadership Program

Three University of the Virgin Islands marine scientists will spend International Women’s Month developing executive leadership skills. Marilyn Brandt, Kristin Grimes and Allie Durdall are among 22 U.S. researchers being honored as Ocean Decade Champions.

The three researchers were recognized for their work with coastal ecosystems, with Durdall and Grimes focusing on mangroves and Brandt on coral reefs. They also work with students and local residents, informing and encouraging them as partners in preservation.

Among the prizes given to Ocean Champions honorees is paid tuition for the Yale Women’s Leadership Program. The six-week course began March 12, but one awardee said there is also an in-person component to the program.

“ … all three of us are going to be traveling to Yale to participate in a women’s leadership program, which is a really important opportunity for us to gain new skills, new ways of thinking that I think will really change our perspectives,” Grimes said, “But what I really hope to do with it is to bring some of those skills back, to share them not only with the young women that I mentor, but more broadly with the community here as well, and all of my other students.”