At 16, this Florida student designed bird-monitoring project. Her research found some bird populations rose by to 159% after restoration

A 16-year-old student from Sarasota, Florida, Sophia Haakman started growing butterflies when she was seven years old, and it has since evolved into a serious conservation effort. Haakman sought to find out if the hundreds of hours she had spent rehabilitating local ecosystems were truly beneficial to wildlife. She created her own bird-monitoring initiative, and a major birding journal will soon publish the findings.

From watching birds to studying their habitats

Haakman, a student at Pine View School, has gathered more than 850 volunteer hours across organisations including Sarasota Bay Watch, Sarasota Audubon Society and the Florida Young Birders Club. While volunteering with Sarasota Bay Watch, she helped remove invasive plants and restore native vegetation. But instead of stopping there, Haakman proposed measuring what happened to birds after restoration.

After consulting researchers and experts, she and volunteers began conducting monthly bird counts from kayaks. Her project found that local bird species were doing better in restored areas than in locations that had not undergone the same habitat work.

Her research is headed to a national magazine

Haakman turned her findings into an article expected to appear in Birding, the flagship magazine of the American Birding Association. The report was tentatively scheduled for its September 2026 issue. Ronda Ryan, executive director of Sarasota Bay Watch, said the teenager's work helped the organisation go beyond simply removing invasive species by providing evidence that restoration was supplying birds with resources they needed. Ryan told WUSF/Suncoast Searchlight that Haakman had changed her perception of young conservationists, saying children “have a lot more than you might give them credit for.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by WGCU Public Media (@wgcupublicmedia)

At 13, Haakman created a birding chapter closer to home

Haakman's environmental work extends beyond her research. When she was 13, travelling to Florida Young Birders Club events proved difficult because they were too far away. Rather than abandoning the activity, she contacted the club's founder about establishing something closer to Sarasota. Those conversations eventually helped create a Manasota chapter for young birders in Sarasota and Manatee counties. Additionally, Haakman has assisted guests in identifying species in Sarasota's Celery Fields as a volunteer bird naturalist.

The marsh itself has grown to be a significant local conservation concern. Sarasota Audubon successfully prevented a proposed development on flood-prone area that drained toward the Celery Fields, according to a 2025 report from Audubon Florida. According to Audubon, locals, scientists, and birdwatchers collaborated to make the case that development might endanger the restored wetland.

From a shy student to speaking before officials

Perhaps Haakman's transformation has not only been environmental. She told WUSF that classroom presentations once “terrified” her. By 2025, however, she was speaking before the Sarasota County Commission about development near the Celery Fields. Haakman, who is nearing her senior year, intends to pursue environmental studies and eventually work in biophilic design, which aims to create cities that more closely integrate nature. Her experience demonstrates how conservation can start with something quite straightforward: observing wildlife in the outdoors. After a while, Haakman began to wonder if habitat restoration was truly effective. The sixteen-year-old went out and gathered the evidence herself rather than just speculating.