Alphonse
From left to right: Christopher Narty, Liam Padayachy, Kaeleah Andrew and Jack Coupland
Conservation OfficerJack CouplandFor much of the last 10 years, Jack has worked on the East African coast, gaining a wide range of experience working on terrestrial, marine and social projects. Prior to joining ICS, he spent over a year working in the Seychelles, conducting baseline assessments of coral reefs, seagrass meadows and mangroves and is loving the diversity that Alphonse has to offer. |
Assistant Conservation Officer
Kaeleah AndrewKaeleah is a Zoology MSc graduate from South Africa with a background in endangered species conservation and behavioral ecology of large African predators. The Seychelles has inspired an appreciation for the importance of conserving the terrestrial and marine environment of these delicate island ecosystems and the endangered species that rely on them. Before arriving on Alphonse, Kaeleah ran the conservation programme on North Island, Seychelles and was responsible for all aspects of island conservation, long-term monitoring, biosecurity measures and volunteer & staff management. As Assistant Conservation Officer for the Alphonse group, she will be assisting with long-term monitoring and conservation of the abundant marine life, birds and other endangered species and with the exciting research projects carried out in this unique and beautiful atoll.
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Senior Conservation RangerChristopher NartyChris (also known as Topher) is Seychellois. He attended the Maritime Training Centre (MTC) on Mahé in 2000 to 2002. As part of his training he worked for 6 months on the IDC supply vessels visiting the outer islands of the Seychelles. Whilst at MTC he also completed his PADI Divemaster training, following which he went to work as a Divemaster on Alphonse Island for two years. He continued to gain experience of the waters surrounding the Seychelles by working as a dive guide on liveaboard vessels in the outer islands and as a kayaking guide around Praslin and La Digue. His love of the natural world has grown through these experiences and he is happy to be using his keen eye for wildlife and excellent knowledge of Seychelles flora and fauna in his role as Conservation Ranger with ICS Alphonse. Topher’s current interests include fisheries and sustainability. |
Conservation RangerLiam PadayachyLiam is one of the conservation rangers on Alphonse. He graduated from the Seychelles Maritime Academy in 2019 and started working with ICS on Aride in late 2020. He then moved to Desroches Island in the beginning of 2022 for another year and as of June 2023 has transferred to Alphonse Island. He continues to learn and develop his skills in conservation with each new island and their different ecosystems by assisting in ongoing projects as a ranger, skipper and also as a diver.
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Aride
Group photo of the team on Aride Island as of May 2023
Top left to right: Anthony Bentley (Island Manager), Julio Confiance ( Assistant Ranger), Annie Simons (Science Officer- Projects), Emma Cotton (Assistant Conservation Officer). Bottom Left to Right: Jean-Claude Camille (Maintenance), Laurette Asba (General Assistant), Steve Esther (Conservation Ranger/Boatman), Shana Clarisse (Intern/Volunteer), Leroy Didon (Ranger/Boatman) and Stephann Antoine (Handyman).
Top left to right: Anthony Bentley (Island Manager), Julio Confiance ( Assistant Ranger), Annie Simons (Science Officer- Projects), Emma Cotton (Assistant Conservation Officer). Bottom Left to Right: Jean-Claude Camille (Maintenance), Laurette Asba (General Assistant), Steve Esther (Conservation Ranger/Boatman), Shana Clarisse (Intern/Volunteer), Leroy Didon (Ranger/Boatman) and Stephann Antoine (Handyman).
Island ManagerAnthony BentleyHailing from the United Kingdom, Anthony has over ten years’ experience in working in conservation for a number of NGO’s. Most notably, Anthony worked for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). He has a passion for photography. He also loves spending time in nature and has great interest in birds. |
Conservation OfficerVacant Post |
Assistant Conservation OfficerEmma CottonEmma is from the UK and has several years of experience working in conservation. Having gained a BSc in Zoology, she has developed a passion for island conservation; working within the Indian Ocean for the past few years including Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius. She has a keen interest in island restoration and birds. She enjoys all things nature. |
Science Officer - ProjectAnnie SimonsAnnie has been working in the field of conservation for several years. After time with the RSPB in the UK she moved to Malta to train in the environmental education before working as a warder for BirdLife Malta. She enjoys hands on conservation carrying out bird ringing, bird rehabilitation and monitoring. |
Other Staff
Conservation Ranger/Boatman - Steve Esther
Ranger/Boatman - Leroy Didon
Assistant Ranger - Julio Confiance
Maintenance - Jean-Claude Camille
General assistant- Laurette Asba
Handyman - Stefan Antoine
Student Interns/Volunteer: Shana Clarisse
Ranger/Boatman - Leroy Didon
Assistant Ranger - Julio Confiance
Maintenance - Jean-Claude Camille
General assistant- Laurette Asba
Handyman - Stefan Antoine
Student Interns/Volunteer: Shana Clarisse
Astove
From Left to Right: Aurelie Hector (Assistant Conservation Officer), Jake Letori (Conservation Officer) and Ricky Adeline (Senior Ranger).
Conservation Officer
Jake joined ICS in December 2021 and brings expertise in island conservation with skills in remote field environments, undertaking long term monitoring on a wide range of terrestrial and marine biodiversity in Seychelles. Equally adapted to work behind a keyboard, he enjoys dealing with datasets, mapping spatial information, applying for grants, and writing reports to aid management decisions. Jake combines this with his passion to share and exchange his skills through training, also working collaboratively with others through media to raise awareness and engage with local and global audiences. As a water person, he is addicted to life above, on and below the ocean’s surface. Happiest when freediving, searching for marine predators and observing seabirds. This is driven by his interests in spatial ecology and tracking of marine taxa, fascinated about their movements and what drives their behaviours and how humans are impacting them. Senior Ranger
Ricky developed an interest in conservation working on Cousin Island in 2017 and after 3 years joined ICS on Aride Island as Ranger/Boatman. Ricky was the main man to be bringing visitors ashore and making sure they returned safely, expertly handling the waves. At ICS, Ricky furthered his conservation experience, a favourite of his is working with different birds, especially the endemic magpie robin. After Aride, he transferred to the remote outer islands, working on Farquhar Atoll and is now on Astove and Cosmoledo Atoll. Ricky says “they are amazing places to learn and discover”. You can find Ricky surfing around Praslin and underwater as a rescue diver, he also enjoys long walks in nature. |
Assistant Conservation Officer
Aurelie Hector is a dedicated conservation biologist who started her career with the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation. She joined the Seychelles Islands Foundation from November 2019 to October 2021 as the Vallée de Mai science coordinator, where her role was to implement the research and monitoring programmes of forest flora and fauna in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, coupled with a strong educational and outreach component. Aurelie gravitated towards the outreach aspects of SIF and assisted the educational officer in communicating science and conservation, developing an educational booklet about the Vallée de Mai for young students. Aurelie has a passion for illustration and creative storytelling, and wishes to combine her interests with her education (BSc in Biology) to create narrated animations and books for young people on environmental and conservation topics, especially with focus on tropical island ecosystems. Aurelie joined ICS in December 2021 and started her journey as an Assistant Conservation Officer on Farquhar Atoll and is now based on Astove and Cosmoledo Atoll, where she continues to exert her passion and contribute to the protection of Seychelles biodiversity. |
Desroches
From let to right: Bernice Brands (Conservation Officer), Leeroy Estrale (Senior Ranger) and Irma Dubois (Assistant Conservation Officer).
Conservation OfficerBernice BrandsBernice is from the Netherlands, and she has a great interest in the tropics. She has a BSC and MSC in ecology and after trying out the education field, she decided that her heart lies with conservation. She loves the wildlife in the Seychelles and has previously worked on Fregate and Cousin Island. This is her first time on an outer island and she is determined to improve the islands ecosystem and is eager to get involved in the marine projects. |
Assistant Conservation OfficerIrma DuboisIrma has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental science specializing in Tropical biodiversity conservation from the University of Seychelles. She has over 8 years experience working in conservation and was previously working at the Vallee de Mai, UNESCO world heritage site, where she worked for three years as a field research officer. Her work entailed monitoring the flora and fauna within the world heritage site, including the endemic coco de mer and black parrot and the removal of invasive species within the site such as the yellow crazy ants. Irma has worked with a range of organisations within Seychelles such as SaveOurSeas, WiseOceans and marine conservation society of Seychelles, so has experience with not only terrestrial but marine conservation and research work, from fish monitoring to coral rehabilitation. |
Conservation Ranger
Leeroy Estrale
At an early age, Leeroy developed a passion for nature. He is eager to learn and understand how Nature functions and to do his utmost at his work of conservation of different species. Prior to his tenure on Desroches Island, Leeroy had worked in other conservation and environment organisations in Seychelles. Leeroy also enjoys surfing, gardening and chasing after wildlife with his camera in hand.
Farquhar
From let to right: William McNeely (Conservation Officer) and Elena Levorato (Assistant Conservation Officer).
Conservation Officer
William hails from Switzerland and also joined ICS in July, 2021. He is also a qualified biologist specialised in eco-ethology and chemical ecology after completing a post-graduate degree at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. During his studies, William collected data in the Red Sea, Egypt, and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. The data collected was based on fish behaviour, physiology and cognition. Similarly to Elena, William completed a 3 month volunteer programme with ICS on Aride in 2019. He was involved in the monitoring of several key species, such as birds, reptiles and invertebrates. William describes himself as an avid traveler who is keen to discover new cultures. Through his travels he has joined several internships in the field of biodiversity conservation. He believes that there are unique flora and fauna in Seychelles that are worth protecting for future generations. During his spare time, William enjoys taking nature photography and has a collection of photos from various locations where he has previously visited. |
Assistant Conservation Officer
Elena is originally from Switzerland and started working for ICS in July, 2021. She is a qualified biologist specialised in eco-ethology and chemical ecology after completing a post-graduate degree at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. During her studies, Elena had the chance to collect data in the Red Sea, Egypt, and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, investigating fish behaviour, physiology and cognition. Her first involvement with ICS started in 2019 when she enrolled on the volunteer programme for 3 months on Aride Island. She worked mainly with Aldabra Giant Tortoises, seabirds and Seychelles Magpie-Robins. Elena enjoys travelling across the world and through this passion she is able to embrace new cultures. Through her travels she has joined several internships in the field of biodiversity conservation. She believes that the Seychelles is home to unique flora and fauna and now more than ever there is an urgent need for everyone to work collectively to conserve and protect the archipelago's exceptional but fragile ecosystems. |
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Conservation Ranger |
Silhouette
From left to right: Said Harryba (Assistant Conservation Officer), Elliot Frost (Assistant Conservation officer) and Nasreen Khan (Conservation Officer).
Conservation OfficerNasreen KhanNasreen completed a Master's degree in Environmental Science at the University of KuwaZulu Natal, South Africa. She has over 14 years experience in biodiversity conservation and research. Nasreen first joined ICS in 2018 and worked as a Conservation Officer on Aride island. Late 2019, Nasreen moved to Seychelles Island Foundation to work as a Science Coordinator and thereafter decided to move back to ICS. Since August 2021, Nasreen is leading the Conservation team on Silhouette and responsible for the implementation of the Silhouette Adaptive Conservation Management Plan, implements conservation programmes and associated projects. Nasreen has had the privilege of working in a few of the world’s most pristine environments including the sub Antarctic and Antarctic. Her work is dedicated towards seeking knowledge and producing scientific data to understand and to mitigate environmental pressures in order to contribute toward the conservation of natural ecosystems and the services they provide. You will find her up a hill or under the ocean. Her favourite bird in Seychelles, is the pirate of the sea, the frigatebird. And her favourite place is Aux Cabris, on Aride Island, watching those spectacular birds. Assistant Conservation OfficerElliot FrostElliot is a wildlife conservationist from England, with a BSc in Ecology & Wildlife Conservation. He grew up in rural Turkey, where his passion for exotic wildlife was ignited. After years of work and studies he eventually developed this interest into a full-time career, dedicated to the research and protection of the wildlife he loves. His practical experience ranges from combatting illegal wildlife trade at the European border, to captive management of species for both rehabilitation, education and head-starting as part of targeted release programmes. This vital work spans four countries, three of which in the tropics of Central America and the Indian Ocean. This diversity of location brought with it a range of focal species, from crocodiles and sloths to Britain’s rarest reptiles and hand-rearing the rapidly declining, Eurasian Curlew closer to home. Today, Elliot is committed to the research, monitoring and management of Silhouette Island’s biodiversity, to safeguard it’s wealth of endemic and endangered species for future generations. |
Assistant Conservation OfficerSaid HarrybaSaid graduated from the Seychelles Maritime Academy with an Advanced Certificate in Fisheries Science. He also obtained a Durrell Endangered Species Management certificate after completing a short course at the University of Kent in 2019. Said joined ICS as a Conservation Ranger in 2016. As Assistant Conservation Officer on Silhouette Island. He is responsible for the implementation of the biodiversity monitoring programme and Silhouette conservation management plan as well as educating visitors and residents on environmental issues. He has an extensive knowledge of field work ranging from marine to terrestrial work. Amongst all the islands of Seychelles, Silhouette holds a special place in Said’s heart. He notes Silhouette is often referred as “A diamond in the rough” for its pristine forest and well protected biodiversity. This is where he grew up and spent most of his childhood days being outdoors and exploring different parts of the island. The love and care for the wilderness grew on him and had a large influence on his choice to pursue a career in conservation. Conservation RangerVacant Post |