Mother-Daughter  Duo

Michelle Swaby and Danni Washington are a mother-daughter team that founded the Big Blue & You in 2008 with a unified vision to build a brighter future for our youth and the planet.

Daniell "Danni" Washington

CEO

Daniell 'Danni' Washington is a graduate of the University of Miami (BS Marine Science/Biology) who founded the Big Blue & You along with her mother, Michelle Swaby in 2008.  This 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization is dedicated to educating and empowering  youth to become stewards of this blue planet through visual arts and media. For two years, she served as an on-camera host and science filmmaker with Untamed Science which produced over 200 educational science videos for textbooks distributed by Pearson Publishing around the country.  In 2010,Danni became the director of the One Water Workshop which is a 5-day filmmaking workshop created by the Miami World Cinema Center (the first non-profit film studio) where high school students create public service announcements about water conservation issues.  As a 25 year old marine biologist, world traveler and environmental advocate, Danni will continue to focus her energy on using every creative medium to encourage today's young generation to love our natural environment which will ultimately ensure a bright and sustainable future.

E-mail: danni@thebigblueandyou.org

Michelle Swaby

President / Executive Director

Michelle Swaby has owned and operated a successful Florida based firm that specializes in product and event promotions, event planning, meeting planning, show management, show production, street team promotions, as well as artist management. She has served the Florida market for over 12 years and has gained a reputation of excellence.

Ms. Swaby has also been involved in the Entertainment Industry for many years and has been very successful in establishing lasting relationships with key players in all facets of the industry. These relationships have been forged through her work in management at Carnival Cruise Lines (12 years), as Chief Promotional and Production Coordinator for the Cancun Jazz Festival (3 years), the Managing Director of a magazine and Vice President of an Automotive/Bike Show company (4 years). In addition, she has been involved with many successful events in the South Florida and Caribbean areas such as; Umoja Festival, Miami Carnival, Lincoln Mercury Events, American Black Film Festival, Miami Goombay Festival, Spirit Airlines Corporate Meetings, just to name a few.

Her love for children has driven her to tirelessly be involved with many children’s organizations in the community. In addition to mentoring to several children on her own, Michelle is a volunteer with Big Brother Big Sister of Broward, spends hours volunteering at Safe Place (4Kids), is the Mentor Coordinator for Girl Power and organizes a Christmas Drive every year for underprivileged children in several communities.

She is currently working with her daughter for the 501(c)(3) Non-Profit – The Big Blue & You which is an organization focused on educating and empowering young people through presentations, visual arts and the production of a Marine Conservation Television Show for Kids. This production will excite children about the many wonders, mysteries and importance of the Ocean and the Environment.

E-mail: michelle@thebigblueandyou.org

Interns

Kimberly Thompson	"Kimberly Thompson is The Big Blue and You head intern for the Meet-an-Expert Database project and is in her second year of studying Marine Affairs & Policy and French at the University of Miami. She is originally from Pasadena, California and grew up in and around the water. Her favorite water activities are swimming at the beach, scuba diving, boating, and learning about sea creatures. She also loves to travel, paint, and play with her pets. Kimberly hopes to gain all the knowledge and experience that she can about the ocean so that she can be a positive force of change for the environment. She hopes to work in an area of coastal management, environmental restoration, or marine education
Jing Xu	A junior student majors in Public Relations and Economics at the University of Miami and a writer for “The Miami Hurricane” newspaper. He is originally from Shanghai, China, a metropolitan city in Asia close to ocean. His favorite sports are swimming, water ball, soccer and basketball. As an international student, Jing loves traveling and enjoys different cultures. He specializes in writing, graphic design and painting. Jing hopes his writing skills and design works can be improved through real world experience in order to advocate people realizing and taking action into environment protection. He desires to be a successful PR practitioner in an non-profit organization.