Dr. Lekelia “Kiki” Jenkins is a marine sustainability scientist, science dance choreographer, and Associate Professor at Arizona State University. Her commitment to nature was nurtured by her childhood in Baltimore, Maryland, where she fished and crabbed recreationally on the Chesapeake Bay and volunteered as a junior zookeeper.
She received her PhD from Duke University by pioneering a new field of study into the invention and adoption of marine conservation technology. Her research centers on the human dimensions of marine sustainability solutions, including fisheries conservation technologies and marine renewable energy. Her work has led to regulatory changes that allow more sustainable fishing practices, has advised international fisheries diplomacy, and has informed renewable energy policy.
Dr. Jenkins also studies and practices science dance as a means of science engagement, science communication, and social change. Among her many accolades and awards, she received an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship in Ocean Sciences and is a member of the National Academies of Sciences Ocean Studies Board. For her accomplishments as a scientist and role model for women and girls in STEM, she was honoured with a life-sized statue that was exhibited in the National Museum of Natural History’s Sant Ocean Hall.