Dr. Carol Scarpaci

Dr. Carol is a marine mammal tourism scientist (PhD, 2005) and senior leader in the not-for-profit sector, specialising in enterprise risk and compliance, within trauma-informed services for vulnerable communities.

Early career research focused on assessing the effectiveness of legislation protecting marine mammals through compliance and animal behaviour studies. While her long-term studies focused on bottlenose dolphins in Port Phillip Bay Australia, she extended her research to include seal and shark swim tourism through postgraduate supervision whilst in academia.

Since departure from academia she has broadened her approach, drawing on her leadership experience to adopt a more strategic and human rights–focused lens on marine mammal tourism management.

Carol has an extensive publication record (including ERA A and A* journals) and has held influential roles, Associate Editor for Tourism in Marine Environments, advisor to the International Whaling Commission for whale watching, Board Director for the Society for Conservation Biology (Marine Section), and recipient of the Ivor Beatty Award. Her work has contributed to strengthening wildlife legislation in Australia and internationally, alongside academic leadership as a postgraduate supervisor, reviewer for journals, and PhD examiner.

At this stage of her career, Carol is focused on supporting emerging scientists and improving the translation of research into policy that mitigates negative impacts on marine mammals. Through her Dr.Dolphin23 Instagram platform, she hopes to influence marine mammal tourism by reshaping tourist expectations— promoting a shift from a punitive compliance model to a more proactive, prevention-focused approach that safeguards all stakeholders. She also hopes to see mammal wildlife laws create opportunities to embed First Nations Peoples wisdom to managing marine mammals.