Sea Turtle Inclusivity Fund Profile - Sharon Bernal
Our Sea Turtle Inclusivity Fund is helping to grow leaders in disadvantaged coastal communities around the world. These funds help young emerging conservationists to advance in their career and help these communities engage in efforts to protect sea turtles.
We recently provided a grant to Palmarito Sea Turtle Camp in Oaxaca, Mexico for Sharon Danetsi Maldonado Bernal to become the organization’s first Ecotourism Coordinator. This grant will cover Sharon’s salary for six months to develop her leadership skills to coordinate volunteers at the camp, support nightly beach patrols, and develop her tour guiding skills.
Hi, my name is Sharon Danetsi Maldonado Bernal, I am originally from a town located in Pinotepa Nacional municipality, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Since I was a child, I had a lot of interest in nature. The place where I grew up was a small town, where I was able to enjoy a healthy and fun-filled childhood.
We are from the Mixtec ethnic group, my grandparents and parents speak the Mixtec language. Our ethnic group is known as the Ñu Savi or rain people. The clothing of our community is a Nahua loom painted with snail paint, an apron, and a huipil. My grandfather was a dancer, he danced the Tejerones and everything he knew he taught to his grandchildren, as well as his legends and stories. My community keeps many stories and legends. It is a place full of fauna and flora, only there is not much environmental education. They still kill snakes, they think that owls are witches; one of my purposes and projects that I have is to provide more information to my community, encourage environmental education, and help conserve the environment.
For that and for many other reasons, I decided to study biology. When I started the degree, I had the idea of wanting to save the world, but once I was inside, I realized that we need to act more locally to start. I hope to graduate, and to continue with a master and PhD. But at the moment, I want to work with children in a project I have. When I go home on vacation, I do small activities, talks and walks with girls and boys. We go out to watch birds, look for mushrooms, or look at iguanas, although I lack material to continue advancing with this, I know that little by little I will achieve it and grow.
I’m in the 7th semester of my degree, I am almost finished and I have learned many things. One of my greatest learnings is working with sea turtles, everything I have learned from the people at the Campamento Tortuguero Palmarito, they have supported and given me information to work on sea turtle conservation efforts. Also, in the not-too-distant future I would like to form a turtle station on the beaches near to my hometown, the hunting of turtles is very strong there, there are no regulations, there is no protection. I hope that with my help, my community one day we will achieve this.