Job Type
Research
Natural Resource Management
Other
Subject Area
Biological Oceanography, Marine Ecology
Chemical Oceanography
Deepsea
eDNA
Activities
On the 25th of August 2025 I took the position of Dean and secretary of the board of the Faculty of Marine Sciences at the newly established Claudetta Toney University for Chemistry, Engineering and Research in Suriname.
I was employed by the Center for Agricultural Research in Suriname as the head of the Aquaculture department while lecturing part-time at the Anton de Kom University of Suriname. The subjects coastal & terrestrial ecology, marine & fisheries biology, and invertebrates in general were subjects that she lectured on. She moved on the work with Conservation International Suriname where she managed the Education, Science and Awareness department. As member of the management team and biodiversity grant manager she fulfilled her role as a biodiversity specialist. She moved on with her PhD in mangrove studies and focused on stress factors of the mangrove ecosystem along the coast of Suriname with emphasis on the District of Coronie. As an Earth Network Volunteer Expert and later as an individual consultant within the Natural Sciences Department of the UNESCO, she provided expert help in the monetizing ideas of the management of the Sint Mary's Biosphere Reserve on Sint Kitts and Nevis in East Caribbean.
In collaboration with the Foundation Children Book Festival she produced environmental awareness educational documentaries in Dutch, English and Sign language about our forest and the sea which are freely accessible on YouTube (Titles: Trots op ons Bos & Trots op onze Zee meaning Proud of our Forest and Proud of our Sea). At government level she has been focal point of the Multilateral Environmental Agreements, including Basel and Stockholm, GEF, IOC focal point and currently also the National Focal Point of UNESCO Man & Biosphere Reserves. At this level she has been the national coordinator for environmental policy and as such liaised with international stakeholders and secretariats regarding the different projects on national and regional level that the country was executing. She also focused on invasive alien species as the Take moth Hyblaea puera of which the caterpillar operates in the mangrove forest and forages on the mangrove leaves and most recently the Giant African Snail that invaded Suriname and causes nuisance and danger to the public health and food security. She is currently also working on seismic vessels in the Exclusive Economic Zone of Suriname as a Marine Fauna Observer/ Marine Protected species Observer and Passive Acoustic Monitoring Operator.
Skills
I'm a scientist, researcher, writer, and lecturer. A good communicator as well.
I use the MS package for writing, and I practice the principle of lifelong learning to stay up to date.
