Marc Dupuis-Desormeaux, President and CEO of Turtle Survival Alliance, is a conservation biologist and a leader with a passion for creating long-term solutions to protect endangered wildlife and reduce human-wildlife conflicts. Marc joined the Alliance in 2023. His goals for the Turtle Survival Alliance are to greatly expand its reach by partnering with stakeholders all over the world to end the threat of turtle extinctions and to ensure that turtle populations thrive in the wild.
His research includes studying tortoise and freshwater turtle communities, demographics, and ways to ensure their long-term survival and has recently discovered a new population of critically endangered pancake tortoises in Kenya. He has also worked with community leaders in Canada and in Kenya to organize community-science efforts to monitor turtle nesting and reduce human-caused mortality. Marc has also led projects aimed at protecting mammals and birds. He works closely with the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy where he studies lion, hyena and vulture behavior, and ways to ensure their co-existence with people.
Marc holds a Ph.D. in Biology (Conservation Biology), a Master of Environmental Studies (Wildlife Conservation), a Master of Business Administration (Finance) and a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance). He lectured in ecology and conservation at York University’s Glendon College. Marc volunteers on various board of organizations that dedicate themselves to turtle and wildlife conservation, including the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre, the Canadian Herpetological Society and is a member of various scientific societies, including the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Species Specialist Group.
