Posted by Leticia Lago – Developer Marketing
When environmental science student Caitlin returned home from a sea turtle trip in Western Australia, she was inspired to create a conservation tool that could improve tracking of the species. She connected with Nicolas, a French developer and fellow marine life enthusiast, to design their app We spotted turtles!allowing anyone to support the tracking efforts by uploading photos of those spotted in the wild.
Caitlin and Nicolas shared their journey in our latest film for #WeArePlay, which showcases the amazing stories behind apps and games on Google Play. We caught up with the pair to learn more about their passion and how they're making progress toward advancing sea turtle conservation.
Tell us how you both became interested in sea turtle conservation?
Caitlin: A few years ago I did a sea turtle monitoring program for the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions in Western Australia. It was probably one of the most magical experiences of my life. Then I decided that I just wanted to work with sea turtles.
Nicholas: In 2010, I volunteered in French Polynesia on a sea turtle conservation project. I was moved by the experience and when I returned to France I knew I wanted to use my engineering background to create something inspired by the trip.
How did these experiences lead you to create We Spot Turtles! created?
Caitlin: There are seven species of sea turtles, and all are critically endangered. Or rather, there isn't enough data on them to determine an accurate danger status. This means that the species' needs are not being met and sea turtles are quietly becoming extinct. Our inspiration is mainly to better monitor sea turtles so that conservation can be improved.
Nicholas: When I returned to France after observing sea turtles, I knew I wanted to create an app inspired by my experiences. However, I had put the project on hold for a while. When a friend sent me Caitlin's social media post looking for a developer for a sea turtle conservation app, my inspiration was reignited, and we worked together to create it together.
We spotted turtles! Doing?
Caitlin: Essentially, members of the public upload images of sea turtles they spot – and even get to name them. Then the app automatically geolocates, giving us a date and time stamp of when and where the sea turtle was located. This allows us to monitor turtles and improve our conservation efforts.
How do you use artificial intelligence in the app?
Caitlin: Advances in AI in recent years have given us the opportunity to make a greater impact than would otherwise have been possible. The machine learning model Nicolas created uses the turtles' facial scale and pigmentations to not only identify the species, but also give that sea turtle a unique code for tracking purposes. If he is photographed by someone else in the future, we can see in the app where he has been spotted before.
How has Google Play supported your journey?
Caitlin: Launching our app on Google Play helped us reach a global audience. We now have communities in Exmouth in Western Australia, Manly Beach in Sydney, and a total of six countries are already using our app. Without Google Play we wouldn't have the ability to connect on such a global scale.
Nicholas: I'm a mobile application developer using Google's Flutter framework. I knew Google Play was a good place to release our title because it made it easy for us to work on the platform. As a result, we were able to make the app great.
What do you hope to achieve with We Spot Turtles!?
Caitlin: We spotted turtles! puts data collection in the hands of the people. It gives everyone the opportunity to make an impact in the field of sea turtle conservation. That's why we believe we can massively change and redefine conservation efforts and increase people's engagement with the natural world.
What are your plans for the future?
Caitlin: Nicolas and I have big plans. We want to expand to other species. We would like to make whale sharks, birds and red pandas. Ultimately, we want to achieve our goal: improving the conservation of various species and animals around the world.
Discover other inspiring app and game founders featured in #WeArePlay.
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