Neil van Niekerk

Executive Director, 2DegreesC.org

Association, Company, Affiliations: 2DegreesC, Southern Cross Club, Lionfish University

Location: St. Petersburg, Florida

Your favorite quote: “If you give up, It’s over.” – Dr. Sylvia Earl

Your message or mission statement: Build a global community of citizen scientists who gather and share climate data that support innovative climate solutions.

Your latest endeavors and where they take place: Along with 2 partners, I founded 2DegreesC, a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit, for the purpose of using citizen scientists to generate meaningful scientific environmental data, where ever they enjoy nature.

What efforts are you most proud of? In 2011, the study we published in Little Cayman (Frazer et al.) demonstrated for the first time, that the population density of Lionfish could be effectively managed using divers, through culling systematically on the reefs. This method has been adopted in almost all Caribbean countries and elsewhere, including  areas in the Mediterranean Sea.
The study can be found here: Coping with the Lionfish Invasion: Can Targeted Removals Yield Beneficial Effects?

Anything else you’d like us to know? Dry pan the Lionfish with Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Blackened Redfish Magic Seasoning