Beachfront Lighting: Education, Outreach and Materials

Traveling educational displays

With funding from the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program, the Sea Turtle Conservancy created four traveling displays to educate residents and visitors about sea turtle lighting. Each side of the display explains one of the three golden rules to turtle friendly lighting and contains examples of real sea turtle friendly fixtures. The display also comes with a TV screen equipped with an interactive video for visitors to watch.

All of the sea turtle friendly fixtures on the display were graciously donated by lighting manufacturers. We are so grateful to Volt Lighting, Liton Lighting, Visionaire Lighting, and Elcast Lighting!

Where are the displays now?

-Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium, Lee County (permanent host)
-Sea Turtle Program Office, Volusia County (permanent host)
-William H. Jervey Jr. Venice Library, Sarasota County
-Satellite Beach City Hall, Brevard County

How can an organization borrow a display?

Organizations can borrow the lighting displays for a minimum of 3 months and a maximum of 1 year. If you would like to borrow a display or would like more information, please email casie@conserveturtles.org.

Lighting webinars for code enforcement personnel

STC has developed a sea turtle lighting training program for city and county code enforcement and planning professionals. This webinar informs code enforcement personnel about how artificial light impacts turtles, the current ordinances and regulations on beachfront lighting, and how to recognize poor beachfront lighting. This particular audience is important because it has the authority to enforce the laws that are already in place.

The webinar consists of three 45-minute sections, an open discussion section, and an interactive exercise that requires attendees to use their newfound sea turtle lighting knowledge in a practical way.

The schedule for 2024 is as follows:

Miami-Dade County: March 19, 9:00 am – 12:30 pm, webinar (presentations by FWC & STC)

Pinellas & Manatee Counties: April 10, 9:00 am – 12:30 pm, in-person workshop at Clearwater Marine Aquarium Jacobson Ballroom (249 Windward Passage, Clearwater, FL 33767)

***If you would like to RSVP to a webinar or request a lighting webinar for your area, please email emily@conserveturtles.org***

Online Sea Turtle Lighting Workshop

STC recognizes that not all code enforcement officers and building professionals can attend our in-person sea turtle lighting workshops. After listening to requests from code enforcement officers across the state of Florida, STC has developed a condensed, online version of the lighting workshop, which can be found on our YouTube channel. Here are the three sections:

Part 1: Sea Turtle Biology
Part 2: The Laws Surrounding Sea Turtles and Lights
Part 3: The Best Practices for Managing Artificial Light

Sea Turtle Lighting Initiative for Real Estate Professionals

Stakeholders from across the state of Florida have recognized the need to educate coastal real estate agents about local lighting ordinances and the benefit of turtle friendly lighting. If a family is considering moving to Florida from out of state, a real estate agent may be the first person that they will interact with. STC believes real estate agents have a responsibility to educate potential buyers about sea turtle nesting and the restrictions that coastal properties must follow.

STC has created attractive, informative packets that can be provided to clients who have just purchased a beachfront home. The packet includes information about how coastal homeowners can be good stewards of sea turtle nesting habitat as well as a free keychain. If you are a real estate agent and are interested in receiving free packets to distribute to your clients, email casie@conserveturtles.org.

Educational Materials

Click on the images below to download a flyer about beach flashlights, a brochure about STC’s lighting program, a guide about sea turtle friendly fixtures and bulbs, or a general brochure about the problem of sea turtles and artificial light.

                                      

If you live in Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, Lee or Collier counties and are interested in retrofitting your beachfront property, call STC at 352-373-6441.