Cynthia Smith

Dr. Cynthia Smith is the Executive Director of the National Marine Mammal Foundation and Program Manager of the VaquitaCPR conservation project. Her background as a lead veterinarian for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill investigation made her a perfect fit to co-lead the team of 90 experts from 9 countries to search for and rescue vaquitas. Her essential role in the VaquitaCPR rescue mission is portrayed in the film "Sea of Shadows". Dr. Lorenzo Rojas-Bracho, the VaquitaCPR Director in Mexico, asked Smith to co-lead the project. Dr. Rojas-Bracho is the world's leading vaquita expert, earning him the name "Mr. Vaquita." She also serves as the lead investigator for a Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative project investigating the high pregnancy failure rate in wild dolphins following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster. This work was featured in the documentary series, "Journey to Planet Earth - Dispatches from the Gulf 2." Dr. Smith understands the importance of giving back locally and globally through medical expertise and high-quality science to improve conservation and marine mammal protection efforts world-wide. Smith and her team provide technical, medical, and scientific consultation to help solve problems related to conservation medicine, human-made environmental change, and endangered species recovery.