PRESIDENT’S REPORT FOR THE 42ND ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM ON SEA TURTLE BIOLOGY AND CONSERVATION, PATTAYA, THAILAND, 24TH-29TH MARCH, 2024

STEPHEN G. DUNBAR^1,2,3,#, ROBERT GAMMARIELLO^2,3, INGRID YAÑEZ⁴, NANTARIKA CHANSUE⁵, SIRAWICH SRISIRI⁵, NITIWADEE KESCHUMRAS⁵ & THANIDA HAETRAKUL⁵

¹President, International Sea Turtle Society

²Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda CA, USA

³Protective Turtle Ecology Center for Training, Outreach, and Research, Inc. (ProTECTOR, Inc.), Loma Linda CA, USA

⁴Eastern Pacific Hawksbill Initiative (ICAPO)

⁵Veterinary Medical Aquatic Animal Research Center of Excellence, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

^#sdunbar@llu.edu

Download article as PDF

The 42^nd International Sea Turtle Society Symposium (ISTS42) took place from 24^th-29^th March 2024 at Dusit Thani Hotel, in Pattaya, Thailand. Planning for the Symposium began in 2022 shortly after the election of Stephen Dunbar to the position of President-elect, with initial meetings between Dunbar and his Thai organising team, and the Mayor of Pattaya, Mr. Poramese Ngampiches and his team. With a welcoming spirit, Mayor Ngampiches encouraged the organising committee to pursue holding the ISTS in Pattaya and began to offer services and ongoing support for the Symposium. “It will be a great honour and pleasure to have the ISTS in Pattaya,” Ngampiches said. It was decided early by the President and Thai Organising Committee that Pattaya would serve as an ideal host city due to its location on one of the largest beach areas in the country, as well as the many features on offer to visiting attendees to the Symposium. These include scores of international restaurants, street food stalls, craft markets, and opportunities to explore the many cultural treasures of the surrounding province. The city is an eclectic mix of cultural heritage, art, crafts, tradition, and exciting events. Additionally, it was the only coastal location with hotels large enough to host the international event, with more than 500 attendees expected to attend. 

Over the ensuing 23 months after deciding the host city, a huge coalition of committee members and organizers pulled together to discuss ideas for the Symposium. These ideas included a wide range of workshops, regional meetings, and special sessions. For the 42^nd ISTS, we also planned some new initiatives, including having three concurrent oral sessions, a student-only social event, and introducing an ‘Origin Stories and Stories from the Field’ special session. In total, the organising group was comprised of no less than 23 committees, with each working in concert with other committees to ensure plans avoided overlap, conflicts, and redundancies.

This was only the second time for the ISTS to be held in Southeast Asia, with the first being the 23^rd ISTS Symposium presided over by Nicholas Pilcher in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2003. For the first time in the Society’s history, the symposium was hosted in Thailand and more accessible to communities, researchers, government agencies, and students from the Southeast Asia and Indian Ocean regions. In order to facilitate a sense of integrating attendees from both the East and West, as well as the Global North and South, the theme of the Symposium was “All In – All Together; Inspiring the Next Generations of Global of Sea Turtle Conservationists.” This theme set the inclusive tone of the meetings, with the warm and welcoming staff of the Dusit Thani Pattaya Hotel, and the international inclusiveness of the city providing the perfect backdrop for all attendees to feel they were part of a truly historic and memorable ISTS gathering. 

Of the 590 pre-symposium registrants, 558 attended the meeting (95%), representing 66 countries from around the world, with especially high attendance from the Asia and Southeast Asia regions, fulfilling one of the main purposes of holding the meetings in Thailand. 

Logo: To commemorate the 42^nd ISTS, the symposium logo was thoughtfully designed by Dr. Sirawich Srisiri (a member of the Thai Organising Committee for the Symposium) with input from President Dunbar, and the use of turtle images originally painted by Dawn Witherington. The logo incorporated elements of the Thai culture, including a city scape of historic cultural icons throughout Thailand, and the Thai art style of the traditional golden leaves, called Kranok. The Kranok is a classical, fundamental Thai pattern widely used for the ornamentation of Thai architecture and art. In the logo, the Kranok cradles a water body rendered in the distinctive Thai artistic style, along with the cityscape, and the three species of sea turtles (green, hawksbill, and leatherback) most commonly found in Thai waters, all symbolising Thailand’s rich historic heritage connected to its waters. Overall, this logo demonstrates the harmonization of Thai tradition, culture, and arts, with the conservation of precious sea turtles.

Symposium Website: The website for the 42^nd ISTS was expertly developed and managed by Dr Paul Whittock. This included the use of the general format developed for the 40^th ISTS Symposium in which key tabs and links were already in place on the website. New tabs and pages were added to the ISTS42 website as desired, and Paul was also able to provide a map of countries represented by attendees for the Symposium. The integration of ConfTool also made changes to registration details, abstracts, payments, communications to specific attendees, and the Symposium program development much easier from a management perspective. ConfTool has also helped to automate several aspects of the development and organization of the Proceedings booklet for publication.

Communications and Social Media: From the start of the planning for the ISTS42, the Organising Committee was committed to providing regular and informative e-mails and social media posts to the ISTS Membership, the CTurtle listserve, and regional leaders’ e-mail lists. Although social media posts were initially slow, the onboarding of Stephanie Molina to direct the Symposium social media campaign, along with assistance from Ingrid Yañez and Laura Prosdocimi greatly improved both the coordination and the output of the campaign, resulting in 164 total social media posts, increasing the number of followers in all Symposium social media platforms, reaching 5,200 for the ISTS Facebook account, 5,400 for the ISTS Symposium42 Facebook account, 1,803 for the ISTS Instagram account, and 614 for the ISTS Twitter account. Over the period from November 8, 2023 – March 20, 2024, engagements in Facebook increased 307%, while engagements through Instagram increased by a staggering 4,500%! Social media was a vitally important means of outreach and engagement to the sea turtle community, as many members who were unable to attend the Symposium were able to keep updated with the many ongoing activities of the meetings. Part of our city-wide awareness were several billboards arranged by the Mayor’s Office, advertising the Symposium around the city. These were expertly designed by Stephanie Molina, as well. 

Travel Grants: Between 2^nd November 2023 and 1^st December 2024, the Travel Grants Committee made up of nine regions received 144 travel grant applications to review. Travel grants provided lodging in shared accommodations for the entire duration of the Symposium. Out of 144 applications, 114 (79.2%) were approved, with 47 (41.2% of total) allocated to Asia, 19 (16.7%) to North America, 10 (8.8%) to Europe, 10 (8.8%) to Mexico and Central America, 10 (8.8%) to South America, 7 (6.1%) to Africa, 5 (4.4%) to Oceania and Polynesia, 3 (2.6%) to the Caribbean, and 3 (2.6%) to the Middle East and North Africa. We were especially pleased to see a large number of Asia constituent applications submitted, and the funding of a large number of these facilitated significant representation from the host region. 

Pre-, Post- Symposium Transportation: As a result of the substantial investment of Pattaya City and the Thai Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) into the Symposium, they provided free shuttle buses that facilitated a safe, care-free way for attendees to easily transfer from Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok to the Dusit Thani Hotel in Pattaya without additional expense or having to organise transportation once reaching Thailand. Return transportation from the Hotel back to Bangkok Airport was also arranged for attendees who took advantage of signing up prior to the Symposium. The ad hoc Transportation Committee was overwhelmed with the immediate responses of attendees when the initial sign-up lists were posted to the Symposium webpage and announced through social media. The positive responses required that we planned for additional busses, especially for the day prior to the start of pre-symposium workshops and regional meetings.

In consultation with the Pattaya City Mayor’s office and the Thai Organising Committee, we were able to reschedule and rearrange busses so that essentially all attendees in need of transportation to and from the symposium were accommodated, despite some expected challenges in locating meeting spots within the arrival area of the airport. Nevertheless, this contribution by Pattaya City was greatly appreciated by all attendees who took advantage of the service. 

Volunteers: The Volunteer Committee was directed by Drs Itzel Sifuentes and Adriana Cortes. On the first day of registration, the ISTS President addressed the Volunteers to thank them for their service and to acknowledge the enormous value of their contributions to the smooth running of the Symposium. The Volunteer team was comprised of 129 attendees, of whom 117 were Travel Grant recipients. Volunteers were called on to assist with room set-ups and changes, ensuring that presentations were uploaded, and attending to any situations that needed extra help. A unique and useful experiment at the 42^nd ISTS was to have an ‘on-call’ group of Volunteers that were accessible by WhatsApp. Their willingness to deal with immediate situations was very helpful, and we again express our thankfulness to all the Volunteers who dedicated their personal time to assisting with the work of the Symposium. 

Pre-Symposium Workshops and Regional Meetings: Attendees who arrived prior to the official start of the Symposium took part in workshops and regional meetings. All 14 workshops were facilitated on Sunday, March 24, and covered topics as varied as GIS, sea turtle rehabilitation and medicine, drones and turtles, photo-based citizen science, and a workshop organised by the Student Committee. Workshops provided a total of 72 hours of instruction and interactions, with a total number of 364 in attendance. Seven regional meetings were carried out on Monday, March 25, and included African, Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia, Latin American, and a special Thailand meeting, among others. These meetings provided a total of 36 hours of reporting, discussion, and planning time involving 350 registered participants. In all, both workshops and regional meetings were well organized, efficiently conducted, and highly successful. 

Opening Events: For the ISTS42, the Student Committee, headed by Janie Reavis and Gabriela Arango, organised a special Student Mixer event. Students were provided time from 5:30pm – 6:30pm on Monday 25^th March for a students-only opportunity to meet and greet each other without the presence of supervisors and other attendees. This was designed to facilitate opportunities for students to meet students as peers, and to have opportunities to relax and enjoy social connections among former friends, and to meet new student friends in a relaxed and purely social atmosphere. 

At the completion of the Student Mixer, all other Symposium participants who had pre-purchased Opening Social tickets were then permitted to move into the open beach area where the first symposium-wide social event took place. During this special event, attendees enjoyed special Thai Traditional dances performed by the Pattaya local students dance group, an abundance of different food stalls, available drinks, and the Master of Ceremonies talents of Dr Jesse Senko. The event was originally planned for approximately 300 participants, although actual attendance well exceeded that number, reaching 412. This evening event was a fitting preparation for the much-anticipated Symposium Opening Ceremonies of Tuesday morning, 26^th March.

The official start to the 42^nd ISTS began when the International Sea Turtle Society President, Stephen Dunbar, and Thai Organizing Team met the special honoured guests at the entry of the Hotel. These guests included Mr Poramese Ngampiches, Mayor of Pattaya City; Mr Pinsak Surasawadee, Director General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR); Mr Autthaphon Chatroenchansa, Director General of the Department of National Parks (DNP); the representative of Mr Bancha Sukkaew, Director General of the Department of Fisheries; Ms Preeyaporn Suwannakes, Director General of the Department of Pollution; Admiral Suwin Jaengyodsuk, Deputy Commander of the Royal Thai Navy; and very special guest, Mr Jatuporn Buruspat, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, and Representative for Her Highness, Princess Sirivannavari. After a brief assembly and short introductions of the dignitaries in the hotel entryway, the Special Guests’ Party filed into the Napalai Convention Hall to the cheering crowd of Symposium attendees. Official welcome speeches were given by Mayor Ngampiches and Permanent Secretary Jatuporn Buruspat, who each welcomed the attendees and placed the Symposium as a highlight of the sea turtle conservation efforts of the country. An ISTS President’s award was presented by Stephen Dunbar to the Permanent Secretary on behalf of the Princess Sirivannavari Thai Coral Reef and Marine Life Conservation Foundation, for the work of the foundation toward sea turtle conservation in Thailand and support of many of the national organizations attending the Symposium.

For the first time in Symposium history, a video entitled “International Sea Turtle Society – Who We Are” was premiered. The video was compiled by Michael Dunbar, and presented short clips of videos and photos from more than 40 organizations, projects, and communities that are part of the International Sea Turtle Society undertaking projects and programs around the world. The beautiful video (also available on the ISTS42 website at: https://www.ists42thailand.org/) received a hall-wide standing ovation. Finally, Dunbar addressed the entire assembly and encouraged all of those present to reach out to one another, providing support and a sense of community, especially to the young among the group, and those who will become the international conservation leaders and decision makers of the future.

Once finished, Dunbar invited representatives of each organizing committee on stage with all the dignitaries, to receive recognition from everyone in attendance for their tireless work in organizing the ISTS42, then together with Permanent Secretary Buruspat, led the President’s Party through the poster hall, then to each of the hallway displays, and finally out to the entrance of the hotel.

Opening events concluded with excellent Plenary presentations by Dr Jeffrey Seminoff (“Reflections from a sea turtle lifer”), and Jarina Mohd Jani (“Sea turtle conservation in Southeast Asia: A tale of two beaches, and some of those in between”). These Plenary presentations fully set the stage for the remainder of the Symposium in providing a historical context to the growth of the Society, and also the importance of communities in sea turtle conservation in the Southeast Asia region. 

Oral and Poster Sessions: During the ISTS42, we elected to run three concurrent oral sessions. This resulted in more opportunities for oral presentations, and the highest number of orals presented in sea turtle symposium history. After abstract submissions ended in November 2023, the Program Committee, led by Dr Kelly Stewart undertook the task of reviewing all 331 submissions. In the end, 328 abstracts were accepted, and the Symposium hosted 173 oral presentations and 155 poster presentations. Of these, 114 (combined orals and posters) were presented by students. Poster presentations were available for viewing for three full days, and Symposium attendees were able to interact with poster presenters at the “Meet the Authors” sessions from 4:30pm – 5:30pm, providing time for viewers to ask questions and discuss the presentations. 

Video Night: Once again, the Symposium Video Night was another successful opportunity for projects and organisations to present their work in a unique way. The Video Night was advertised and organized by Dr Seh Ling Long and her team. Twenty-nine videos were received from various countries and organizations, such as Bahari Hai Conservation, City University of Hong Kong, Flora & Fauna International Cambodia, Lampedusa Turtle Rescue, Marine Conservation and Research Organization Malaysia (PULIHARA), Sri Lankan Turtle Conservation Project, State University of Papua (UNIPA), WWF, and several others.

Videos were screened from 8:00pm – 11:00pm on Tuesday night, 26^th March and ranged in purpose and presentation style, promoting conservation efforts, showcasing volunteer programs, highlighting scientific research, celebrating individual contributions, and raising awareness about the threats faced by sea turtles and their habitats. Some videos used engaging narratives and local cultural ties to conservation, while others focused on scientific data, volunteer training, and research techniques. Each one provided the audience with opportunities to see different perspectives on sea turtle conservation programs around the world.  

Trading Post: Once again, the Trading Post raffle program, overseen by Dr Kate Mansfield, was highly successful. This one-time event provides an opportunity for researchers and organizations to donate unused, functional equipment and supplies, to be raffled off to students and organizations who may not have the opportunities or means to purchase these types of supplies first-hand. At ISTS42, individuals were provided raffle tickets, and met at the Trading Post table from 5:30pm – 6:30pm on Thursday 28^th March. As in prior years, the event was highly successful with students, community organizations, and NGOs who were interested in obtaining used, but useful equipment and project materials, from tag applicators to satellite transmitters. This mechanism for the distribution of equipment and materials to student and community projects is an invaluable way to ‘recycle’ supplies from prior projects and laboratories, and represents one way the sea turtle community continues to support students, projects, and communities that may not be able to purchase these kinds of materials.

Silent and Live Auctions: Our Silent Auction was facilitated by veteran host, Dr Marina Zucchini who expertly arranged the auction items in the hotel meeting room specifically reserved for this purpose. Symposium attendees were able to view the items and write down their bids for two full days, then see if they won their items at the closing of the Silent Auction on Wednesday 27^th March. Later that same evening, our host for the Live Auction, expert auctioneer Dr Rod Mast, assisted by Dr Adriana Cortes conducted a fun-filled evening of games, challenges, the election of the Symposium King and Queen, and the infamous jail fundraiser. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the entire Auction Committee, the silent and live auctions raised more than US$23,000 to fund travel grants for the 2025 ISTS Symposium, and did so in a way that highlighted the joy of being part of the global ISTS family.

Student Committee Activities: At the ISTS42, the Student Committee completed its 12^th year of activities dedicated to welcoming and encouraging student attendees. This year, the Student Committee, expertly led by Janie Reavis and B. Gabriela Arango, organised four core activities for student attendees: a Student Workshop (“Career Paths in Sea Turtle Conservation”) attended by 27 students; student presentation feedback; speed-chatting with experts, in which 35 students participated; and a student mixer in which there were games, music, and socialising opportunities. This event was held outdoors and just prior to the general Opening Social. The Committee received very positive feedback from students who were engaged in student activities during the Symposium.

Closing Banquet and Awards Ceremony: The ISTS42 closing banquet was a special event hosted by Dr Dave Owens, who recalled humorous experiences of his many years in sea turtle conservation and research work. At the banquet, long-time sea turtle research and conservation leaders, Dr Kellie Pendoley and Dr Anders Rhodin were honoured with Lifetime Achievement awards, while Scott Eanes and Turtle Watch Egypt 2.0 each took home Champions Awards. The Ed Drane Volunteerism Award was presented to Laura Bruce for her role as a dedicated volunteer with the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Florida. Grassroots Conservation Awards were presented to Campamento Tortuguero Ayotlcalli A.C. and Warriors of the Rainbow for their important roles in sea turtle conservation through educating future leaders and decision-makers. Finally, Dunbar presented nine President’s Awards to individuals who especially contributed to the organisation of this year’s Symposium.

A panel of judges evaluated student oral and poster presentations nominated for the Archie Carr Student Awards. The seven students awarded for their outstanding presentations were: Tiffany Dawson, Megumi Kawai, Emily Turla, and Taylor Brunson in the Biology category; and Gustavo Stahelin, Anna Ortega, and Cindy Vargas in the Conservation category.

Attendees enjoyed traditional Thai music and dancing from a professional dance group, while feasting from a buffet banquet that exceeded the daily bounty provided by the Dusit Thani Hotel Chefs and Kitchen staff.

Symposium Images and Videos: Symposium images and video were captured by Michael Dunbar, Hamed Mallat, and Stephanie Molina. Video shorts and images were presented at the start of sessions throughout the days of the Symposium, and a folder of images has been made available to be viewed and downloaded at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1_3tEyM3iq7A_l8RyF29noQCOBkomQH4x?usp=sharing. Attendees especially appreciated the “Memorial” and “Who We Are” videos produced by Michael and Stephen Dunbar, and the “Closing Remarks” video produced by Michael Dunbar. These videos are available to view at: https://www.ists42thailand.org/ 

Closing Ceremony: At the closing ceremony, ISTS President Dunbar introduced the Keynote Speaker, Dr Kartik Shanker, who presented a thought-provoking, encouraging, and humorous overview of the global approach to sea turtle conservation entitled, “The brighter horizon: balancing human needs and ecosystem health in marine conservation”. Shanker’s address challenged us all to beware of our own prejudices and how these biases can impact our attitudes toward indigenous knowledge and approaches to the science and work of conservation. 

At the completion of the final Keynote address, Dunbar addressed the attendees with a message that reviewed the Symposium week, emphasising, 

“The challenges before us have never been so great as they are now, and those challenges are certain to increase in the near future. Still, we can meet the future with hope. Hope that our efforts can and will make a difference, not only for the creatures we study and work to conserve, but for the marine habitats, and the coastal community members who rely on those habitats for their daily existence. These efforts are less about saving the world, and more about recognizing that we, all of us, are a community of people who are seeking to care for the people around us, and for the creatures who share the planet with us.” 

He concluded his closing remarks with the encouraging thoughts, 

“My hope is that as we close this 42^nd ISTS, that we’ve all been inspired to inspire others, not just others from this sea turtle community, but all those around us; to take courage, to move forward in faith that our efforts are making a difference. To be courageous enough to continue the work of sea turtle research, conservation, community outreach and education, and influencing policies that will better the lives of sea turtles and people around the world. Only now, I hope that part of those efforts will be to support each other, hug each other, and love each other more than we have before. Because that’s what turtle people do! This is who we are!”

As attendees applauded in a standing ovation, Dunbar could be heard saying to the crowd, “I love you guys!”

ISTS Business Meeting: The business meeting began after the formal addresses of the closing ceremony, and reviewed Society business for the 2023 – 2024 year. Essentially all business-related items, including the Treasurer’s, Secretary’s, Awards Committee, Travel Grant Committee, and Student Awards reports were adopted by Society members without extensive discussion. However, the proposal for the restructuring of the Society’s administration initiated much discussion among the members present, with members being reassured that the proposal for restructuring was in the discussion phase with a request for members to provide their feedback on the proposal over the coming year. The Nominations Committee Chair presented the 2024 Elections results: Alexander Gaos was elected President-Elect; Seh Ling Long and Richard Reina were elected to the Board of Directors; Connie Ka Yan and Kellie Pendoley were elected Nominations Committee members; and Ryan Welsh, Rod Mast, Earl Possardt, and Jacques Fretey were elected Awards Committee members. The business meeting was adjourned within the scheduled meeting timeframe.

Presidential Handover: The transition of the Presidency occurred at the conclusion of the Closing Ceremony with the exchange of gifts from outgoing President, Stephen Dunbar, to incoming President, Andrews ‘Andy’ Agyekumhene. Dunbar presented Agyekumhene with some traditional representations of Thailand, while Agyekumhene presented Dunbar with a traditional Ghanaian Chief’s coat. After the exchange, Dr Agyekumhene provided a preview of the ISTS43 meetings to be held in Accra, Ghana in March 2025.

Hotel Hospitality: Our organising teams worked closely on a regular basis with Dusit Thani Hotel in Pattaya. This included detailed planning sessions for room block arrangements, workshop and regional meeting rooms and media assistance, poster and vendor rooms, session rooms, meals, coffee breaks, and both main social events. As many details as possible were worked out well ahead of the Symposium, although plans required updating and finalizing for some aspects of the Symposium up to the week of the start of the meetings. This included meeting room changes, special dietary meal preparations and delivery, adjusting social event numbers, and the move of the Opening Social from the original venue (due to a rapid increase in attendance numbers during ISTS registration, beyond the capacity of the original venue) to the grounds of the Dusit Thani Hotel. In all of these and other on-the-ground adjustments, the management and staff of the hotel provided excellent service for the ISTS meetings in accommodating all our organizational and attendee needs.

The hotel itself was situated in a beautiful setting on Pattaya Beach, where attendees were able to walk the beach, swim in any of the hotel’s three pools, or enjoy the warm ocean waters just a few meters from the hotel grounds. Inside the hotel, rooms were nicely decorated in touches of traditional Thai style, and were comfortable for single, double, or triple occupancy.

Perhaps the service for which we received the most comments was the incredible food that was available to attendees for breakfast and lunch, with a full buffet that included plenty of options for main courses and desserts for all dietary needs. Additionally, the hotel provided food and beverages for both morning and afternoon coffee breaks that showcased many traditional Thai delicacies, introducing attendees to new and delightful flavours and tastes.  

Overall, the 42^nd International Sea Turtle Society Symposium was a huge success that reminded everyone who attended, that if we are to be effective at the global conservation of sea turtles and the habitats they rely on, we must continue to work in intimate collaboration with coastal communities, and be committed to being ‘all in – all together!’  

Acknowledgments 

The ISTS42 President would like to thank (in no particular order) Robert Gammariello, Kelly Stewart, Sabine Dunbar, Nantarika Chansue, Nitiwadee Keschumras, Thanida Haetrakul, Saritpakorn Smithiwong, Sirawich Srisiri, Alexander Gaos, Andrew Maurer, Chelsea Clyde-Brockway, Claire Jean, Dawn Witherington, Diego Amorocho, Dustin Baumbach, Ingrid Yañez, Jeff Seminoff, Kartik Shanker, Michael Dunbar, Lidia Salinas, Natalia Teryda, Ray Carthy, Roldan Valverde, Sabrina Mashburn, Sean Richards, Sophie Mills, Stephanie Molina, Andrea Phillott, Emily Hyatt, Joseph Pfaller, Daniela Freggi, Amanda Southwood-Williard, Manjula Tiwari, Nicholas Blume, Terry Meyer, Michael Jensen, Makayla Kelso, Katrina Phillips, Sittikorn Kamalas, Paul Whittock, Mustapha Aksissou, Ryan Welsh, Imed Jribi, Nicolas Pilcher, Jeanette Wyneken, Yonat Swimmer, Kara Dodge, Mariluz Parga, Michael Salmon, Ana Liria Loza, Jesús Tomás, Natalie Wildermann, Marina Zucchini, Roderic Mast, Itzel Sifuentes-Romero, Adriana Cortes, Ormmy Parinda Awpituk, Janie Reavis, Aileen Lavelle, Retno Kusuma Ningrum, Adela Hemelikova, Martina Bartolini, Chandana Pusapati, Derek Aoki, Merope, Holly Stokes, Sophia Coveney, Nupur Kale, Jenna Contuchio, Melissa Staines, Riko Kimura, Rushan bin Abdul Rahman, Kayla Burgher, Syamsyahidah Samsol, Rangsima Sujittsakul, Seh-Ling Long, Lynn Massey, Suzie Graham, Angela Formia, Karen Eckert, Jose Urteaga, ALan Rees, Alejandro Fallabrino, Mark Hamann, Lalith Ekanayake, Jimena Gutiérrez-Lince, Daniela Rojas-Cañizales, Gabriela Vélez-Rubio, Georgina Zamora-Quilez, Aliki Panagopoulou, Irene Kelly, Connie Ka-yan Ng, Takashi Ishihara, Paolo Casale, Kate Mansfield, Chayanis Daochai, Chandana Pusapati, Shanthasiri Jayaweera, Mohd Uzair Rusali, Betty Delali Dordzi, Laura Prosdocimi, Pablo Antonnio Trujillo Susunaga, Amalia María Cano-Castaño, Diana del Pilar Ramírez Acosta, Anjelika Abou Issa, Nerine Constant, Thane Wibbels, Andrew DiMatteo, Laura Sparks, Brendan Hurley, Zachary Posnik, Antonio di Bello, Gabriela Arango, Marco García Cruz, Renato Bruno, Stephanie Köhnk, Jane Lloyd, Mtalii Ochieng, Christine Hof, Michel Nalovic, John Wang, Harris Wei-Khang Heng, Jaime Restrepo, Jarina Mohd Jani, Hector Barrios-Garrido, Michelle Maria Early Capistran, Cathi Campbell, Jack Frazier, Bryan Wallace, Rachel Smith, Brian Hutchinson, Ashleigh Bandimere, Kelley Anderson, Lindsay Mosher, Marc Girondot, Aiyana Reissman, Kostas Papafitsoros, Daphne Hoh, Chialing Fong, Sea Williamson, Hiltrud Crodes, Summer L. Martin, Matthew David Ramirez, Michael G. White, Sarah Milton, Dave Owens, Justin Randall Perrault, Heidrun Frisch-Nwakanma, Stacy Hargrove, Michael Joseph Liles, Mario Jorge Mota, Kirah Ishelle Forman-Castillo, Tomoko Hamabata, Hie Lim Kim, Robin LeRoux, Erin McMichael, Claudio Quesada-Rodríguez, Kathy Zagzebski, Thushan Kapurusinghe, Deasy Natalia Lontoh, Isabel Marques Silva, Christina Fahy, Liyana Izwin Khalid, Juan Manuel Rguez-Baron, Brad Nahill, Matthew Godfrey, Shaleyla Kelez, Jeanne A Mortimer, Rita Patrício, Annie Page-Karjian, Maximillian Polyak, Sandra Hochscheid, Nathan Jack Robinson, Kellie Pendoley, Chandara Tak, Fitry Pakiding, Cali Turner, Christopher Long, Connie Ng, Gabriela Velez-Rubio, Mariela Pajuelo, Matthew Ramirez, Matthew Ware, Samir Patel, and Seh Ling Long, and Joseph Amoako for all their help in organising and efficiently running the Symposium. He would also like to thank Video Night Contributors: Chandra Tak, Kelly Howlett, Armando J. B. Santos, Amanda Robbins, Ochieng Odhiambo, Olivier Bousquet, Gavin Jolis, Katia Ballorain, Cécile Gaspar, Juanita Joseph, Monica Francesca Blasi, Supraja Dharini, Brian Chin Wing Kot, Tabris Yik To Chung, Henry Chun Lok Tsui, Gilberto Borges Guzman, Clemente Balladares, and Azrin Asyikin. Special appreciation is extended to the Dusit Thani Hotel staff for their assistance and outstanding service to the Society, including Wiracha Suchonthong, Sriprapai Juangngern, Amornpen Jevprasesphant, Siriwan Sangsawang, Saranya Mahapornchaidee, and general manager, Thomas Christiansen. Finally, the President would like to thank the following Donors and Sponsors to the 42^nd Annual International Sea Turtle Society Symposium: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 5 Oceans, PeerJ Open Advances in Marine Biology Publishing, National Save the Sea Turtle Foundation, Sea Turtle Conservancy, International Seafood Sustainability Foundation, WWF Netherlands, City of Pattaya, Chonburi, Loma Linda University, Frontiers in Marine Science Publishing, Save our Seas Foundation, Wildlife Computers, Department of Earth and Biological Sciences of Loma Linda University, Turtle Foundation, AZA Sea Turtle SAFE Program, Coastal Wildlife Club, The Leatherback Trust, Telonics, New England BioLabs Inc, Lotek, Ronald and Kathleen Carter, Upwell Turtles, Ecological Associates, Inc., California Turtle & Tortoise Club – Inland Empire Chapter, Inwater Research Group, Protective Turtle Ecology Center for Training, Outreach, and Research, Inc., Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, Veterinary Medical Aquatic Animal Research Center, Veterinary Medical Aquatic Animal Research Center of Excellence, Chulalongkorn University, Earth Agenda Foundation, and the Princess Sirivannavari Thai Coral Reef and Marine Life Conservation Foundation. Thank you all for your hard work and contributions in making ISTS42 an amazing success. This is Contribution No. 46 of the Marine Research Group (LLU), and Contribution No. 24 of ProTECTOR, Inc.