2025 Marine Environmental Awards Luncheon
Our speaker this year will be Mr. Chris Blankenship - Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Chris Blankenship is the Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), appointed by Governor Kay Ivey in May of 2017. He has been with DCNR since 1994, when he joined the Department as a Conservation Enforcement Officer in the Marine Resources Division. Chris is Chairman of the Forever Wild Land Trust Board, Chair of the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program’s Executive Committee, past Chairman of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, and Program Administrator of the Alabama Seafood Marketing and Testing Commission. Chris also served as a member of the Board of Control of the Employees Retirement System of Alabama. Having been integrally involved in the State’s response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill from the beginning, Chris has a solid background for the oil spill recovery and restoration work he handles as Governor Ivey’s appointed designee to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. Chris also coordinates the Department’s role as Administrator for the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council, which was established to oversee certain funds allocated directly to the State of Alabama. Chris further serves as Lead Trustee for the State of Alabama in overseeing administrative and technical aspects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA), and he assists on behalf of the Governor’s Office with implementing coastal restoration projects funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund. He has been happily married to Allyson Blankenship for 32 years and has three adult children. He is a native of Dauphin Island, Alabama, and currently resides in Montgomery, Alabama.
2025 Award Winners
Statewide Sessions-Brown Conservation Leadership Award - The Nature Conservancy in Alabama
Gulf Coast Marine Environmental Excellence Award - Ms. Roberta Swann
Gulf Coast Marine Environmental Leadership Award - Alabama Water Watch
2025 MEAL Sponsors
Thank you to our Marine Environmental Awards Luncheon Sponsors
Presenting Sponsor
Oakworth Capital
Event Sponsor
Cooper Marine
Poarch Band of Creek Indians
Patron Sponsor
CrowderGulf
PowerSouth Energy
Richard Murray and Co
Streamline Environmental
The Southland Fund
Thompson Foundation
Table Sponsor
ADCNR
Alabama Water Watch
Bay Steel
Bienville Construction Services
Karen Chambless
CMG Engineers
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
ESA
Greer's Markets
Helmsing Leach
Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce
Mobile Bay NEP
Person Services Corp
Regions Bank
Tommy Sirmon
Trustmark
University of South Alabama
University of West Alabama
Mobile County Commission
Friends of the Sea Lab
Summer is here and it's a hot one! Come down to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab and visit The Alabama Aquarium where you can experience the sights and sounds of our bountiful waterways. See live sting rays, red snapper, soft shell turtles, sea horses, an octopus and so much more.
Join the Friends of the Sea Lab and bring your family down as many times as you like for the whole year. Click below to become a Friend of the Sea Lab. Memberships include entrance to Alabama's Aquarium for your entire family and discounts in the gift shop. Don't forget to stop in at the Snack Shop for an ice cream cone or snacks.
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2024 Marine Environmental Awards Luncheon
Wednesday, October 30th 2024
Photos
Your Hometown - Dauphin Island Sea Lab
WKRG Your Hometown spotlights the Dauphin Island Sea Lab programs that allow students to make discoveries while learning about local marine biology
Click the videos below to watch
Alabama Power Celebrates Earth Day with Donation
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Alabama Power celebrated Earth Day on April 22, 2024 with a donation to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Foundation request funds to assist its fisheries research program in expanding and maintaining the Coastal Alabama Acoustic Monitoring Program (CAMP). The network tracks important fisheries species through out Mobile Bay, Mississippi Sound, the Mobile Tensaw River Delta to provide critical information needed for conservation and restoration planning as well as fisheries management. Tracking species such as juvenile red drum, speckled sea trout, flounder and triple tail.
Thank you so much to Alabama Power!
Alabama Dermatology Society Sponsors New Shades on Campus
The Alabama Dermatology Society (ADS) generously sponsored new shades for two locations on the DISL Campus. The new shades allow students and teachers to be out of doors to learn about Marine Science in a safe comfortable environment. THANK YOU ADS!!
 New Endeavor Shades Installed |
 New Shades for the Pavillion |
Scheduled Events
View Now2023-2024 Honor Roll of Donors
Support Education
"The course style influenced me in the college that I eventually attended. I am very thankful for the Marine Science Course and the Sea Lab. It was my first step into a field of study which I still find very interesting."
- Autumn, Marine Science Course
for High School Students.
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"The diversity of these experiences and being exposed to different lab techniques and a variety of field work has really helped me as a young scientist."
- Ph.D. Student Jesse Gwinn
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"I wanted to come to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab because of the researchers and the resources", Rodriguez explained. "It's a close environment with easy access to faculty and everyone is excited to help you."
- Masters Graduate, Alex Rodriguez
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