Dilek Sahin
Project Coordinator
Dilek has a B.Sc in biology from Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University (Turkey) and an M.Sc from Istanbul University (Turkey) in bird ecology and conservation. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the Institute of Environmental Sciences, Bogazici University (Turkey) studying the conservation genetics of endemic Mediterranean shearwaters. Dilek has been working on seabird conservation projects since 2010, mainly in Europe before moving to Kaua’i. These projects mainly focused on endangered species research and management, predator control and biosecurity, light pollution, fisheries by-catch, and creating behavioral change for conservation.
Kylie Smith
Field Crew Leader
Kylie has a decade of experience in the environmental field, encompassing work with diverse bird species such as Newell’s Shearwaters and California Condors. Her expertise includes leading outreach programs, kayak guiding, farming, and creating scientific illustrations. She holds a Master’s Certificate in Scientific Illustration from CSU Monterey Bay and a B.A. in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Cruz. Since 2023, Kylie has focused on studying and working with native Hawaiian Seabirds on Kauai, an island ecosystem she cares deeply about. Outside of her professional pursuits, she enjoys puzzles, board games, painting, and playing roller derby.
Erin Leal
Field Technician
Growing up in Portland, Oregon, allowed Erin to spend a lot of time outside exploring the forests and rocky coast of the Pacific Northwest. After completing a B.S in Biology from Portland State University, they took an internship helping collect data on sharks in the Bahamas, and that is when the seabird obsession really started. Since committing to avian conservation and research, Erin has moved around the United States and worked in Alaska, Oregon, Maine, and the Florida Everglades before joining the KESRP team as a KUPU ʻĀina corps member.
Hazel Cashman
Field Technician
Hazel’s background is in education and she is feeling very lucky to be able to make the transition into conservation as a field tech with KESRP! Originally from Bellingham, Washington, Hazel attended Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, earning a B.S. in Geology and Anthropology. She then worked with a few residential environmental education programs in Maine, Washington, and Colorado before returning to the University of Maine, Orono to earn a M.S in science teaching. After teaching middle school science in Maine and here on Kauaʻi, she joined the Kauaʻi Endangered Seabird Recovery Project in the fall of 2024 as a KUPU ʻĀina Corps member. She is excited to now be one of the conservation scientists that she had enjoyed inviting to her classroom in the past, and is really enjoying working with Kauaʻi’s incredible seabirds and contributing to the project’s outreach and education efforts.
Maddy Hartshorn
Kupu ʻĀina Corps Member
Maddy grew up in the Puget Sound region of Western Washington, where she was almost always exploring outside and cultivating her love of the environment. Attending college in Idaho, Maddy graduated with her B.S in Environmental Biology and grew her love of aquatic ecology. After working for Idaho Fish and Game, she wanted to expand her knowledge of conservation fields and joined the Kupu ʻĀina Corps. In 2026, she is eager to join the KESRP team, contribute to the conservation of these vital Seabird species, and expand her understanding of Hawaii’s incredible ecosystems!
Zishi (Violet) Wu
Field Technician
Violet grew up in Beijing, China, and moved to the U.S. in 2019. She earned her B.S. in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology from UC Davis and her M.S. in Avian Ecology from the University of New England, where she studied the movement and migration of grassland birds. Her previous experience has focused primarily on songbirds, including running a banding station in Nebraska with Bird Conservancy of the Rockies and assisting with songbird research at UMass Amherst. So she is very excited to join KESRP and learn all about seabirds and island ecology on Hawaii. During her free time, Violet enjoys birding, photography, and making her birding adventures into nature documentaries.
Dasha Petrova
Field Technician
Dasha has recently made the hop over to KESRP in 2026, following several years of work in wildlife ecology and subsistence agriculture for a Native Alaskan tribe. Prior to that, Dasha studied Ecosystem Science at Colorado State University, after which she worked all over the Western US with freshwater turtle populations, forest birds, salmonids, shorebirds, and amphibians. In her free time she can be found learning yet another artsy craft, foraging, or can’t be found at all as she is avidly backpacking abroad. Dasha is grateful for the opportunity to learn from Kaua’ i, and use her background in field biology & scientific communications to promote awareness around threatened and endangered species in Hawaii.
