About the Foundation

Our Mission

The mission of the Sarasota Bay Foundation, Inc. is to restore, conserve, and protect the ecological functionality and well-being of the Sarasota Bay estuarine system and regional watersheds through education, community advocacy and funding support.

Our Team

Alison Albee - Board Member

Alison's career has spanned more than 30 years in the environmental field working in private industry, non-profit research, and city and county governments. Her experience includes wastewater treatment and environmental laboratory management, energy and water conservation, and sustainability. She has a degree in Chemical Technology and a degree in Environmental Science and Policy from the University of South Florida.

Alison has lived in the Sarasota area for more than 30 years and she enjoys sailing, kayaking, diving and fishing. She has been an active volunteer with the Longboat Key Turtle Watch for more than 15 years and is a member of the Citizen's Advisory Committee of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program. Additionally, Alison is a board member of the Suncoast Waterkeepers.

Jack Merriam - Board Member

Jack Merriam grew up in Florida and received a BA and MA from USF in Natural Science. He is a member of the Citizen’s Advisory Committee of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program and is past board member of the Suncoast Waterkeeper. His 36 years of water management experience includes Florida Legislative staff, two state resource agencies, one water management district, and two local governments. His current professional interests include climate change adaptation, living shorelines, and implementation of low impact development strategies. He loves kayaking, sailing, fishing, and birding on Sarasota Bay

Valerio Bartolucci, PhD - Board Member

Valerio Bartolucci, PhD, is the Associate Dean of Physical Sciences and Wellness at Broward College, Ft. Lauderdale where he also teaches Hydrogeology and Coastal and Marine Science.
Dr. Bartolucci received his masters degree in Geology from the University of Bologna (Italy) where he did research on longshore currents and sand movement. He received his PhD from the Polytechnic University of Milano (Italy) for his research on the environmental impacts of coastal construction. Prior to his career in academia, he worked primarily in the environmental field. He was representative in Italy for National Seal Company (owned by Waste Management) producing HDPE liner for landfill and worked with Tenax Spa Group designing low environmental impact constructions such as Green Walls and drainage systems.