When Island School alum Skylar Miller (S’03) returned to Eleuthera in the summer of 2010, she was looking for an opportunity that bridged her passion for teaching concepts of marine biology with field-based research. “When I heard the Cape Eleuthera Institute’s mission of ‘Research, Education, and Outreach’ I thought: That’s perfect. That’s exactly what I want to do,” Miller reflected. She has since become a pioneer for that mission. Her collaborative work has resulted in the creation of CEI’s Lionfish Research and Education Program, in partnership with the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) and Simon Fraser University (SFU).

The scope of her work is expanding into the future, with many exciting opportunities to forge new partnerships and extend lionfish programming throughout the Caribbean. “Lionfish invasion is a regional issue,” she described. “There are lots of countries similar to The Bahamas’ situation, politically, economically, socially. We need to consider how we can learn from one another. Looking at communication and how we can share ideas is going to be important as we move forward, as we figure out a solution to the lionfish problem.”

This fall, Miller will begin graduate work at the University of the West Indies, Barbados. Continue reading →