What inspired you to join the Opwall team?
When I was 16 I was determined that I was going to be an actor so I chose to do all arts A-levels including History, Philosophy, German, and Drama - not a natural fit for a career in ecology and conservation! When it came to applying to university I was very unsure what to study but I knew I had always wanted to learn to scuba dive. I took a few years out after school and joined a marine conservation project in Madagascar where I fell in love with the ocean and its weird and wonderful inhabitants. I then went over to Costa Rica and completed by Divemaster (DM) training where I decided I wanted to become a marine biologist as this was going to be a fantastic way for me to combine my love of diving with my curiosity about the natural world - back to college I went! Throughout my dive training I had heard many great things about Opwall so after my first year re-doing my A-levels I applied for a job as a Scientific Divemaster in Honduras, and the rest is history!
On boat for a morning dive (Photo credit: Natalie Lubbock)
How have previous careers and endeavors helped your growth in your current role?
My role at Opwall is hugely varied, ranging from crunching numbers for peer-reviewed journal articles and chatting through dissertation project ideas on the phone with students, through to giving talks at secondary schools around the country and dealing with the logistics of running a research programme in Honduras. The diversity in my job role means that flexibility, adaptability, and confidence with public speaking and regularly meeting new people are key. My undergraduate Biology degree provided me with the analytical and writing skills required to contribute meaningfully to Opwall’s marine research portfolio, and working in the dive industry gave me the experience and confidence to advise students about the feasibility of their proposed research projects - collecting data underwater is very different and much more restricting than on land! The first couple of field seasons I spent out in Honduras with Opwall were spent lecturing groups of secondary school students about coral reefs and the threats they are currently faced with. This experience was invaluable and has enabled me to have the confidence to present to groups of up to 400 students without turning into a nervous wreck! Off the back of this I have been sent on many international sales tours as part of my job and have had the amazing opportunity to visit Germany, the Middle East and New Zealand.
What makes Opwall unique from other marine research programs?
There are many marine research organisations around the world that are doing fantastic work. The majority of volunteer-led programmes focus on long-term biodiversity monitoring on a year round basis which means that they have a very broad understanding of the health of the reef systems they work on. However, the logistical restraints associated with working year round mean that they are rarely able to tackle more targeted and in-depth research questions. Opwall only operates in the field over the summer months, which means that we have the rest of the year to explore our research questions and design appropriate studies, as well as conduct thorough analysis on our data that is included in high-impact peer-reviewed journals. The majority of our projects are staffed by enthusiastic PhD students and early career scientists who are keen to make their mark in the field of conservation and this, in part, helps to explain our high level of output.
You are working on your PhD currently. What do you hope to further achieve with the degree you will earn?
I have really enjoyed my PhD and have been very lucky to have great support from both Opwall and the Open University. Throughout my PhD my confidence with designing research questions and identifying the appropriate methodologies required to address the aims has greatly increased. I have also gained key analytical skills and an ability to keep calm in the face of statistics!! I hope that the skills I have learnt over the last few years will enable me to grow as a researcher and continue to work towards trying to find solutions to the conservation problems currently faced by the world’s coral reefs. I am also a firm believer in the power of science communication to raise awareness and change attitudes towards the environment, and I am keen to use what I have learnt during my PhD to help try and bridge the gap between science and society.
Surveying a quadrat (Photo credit: Corey Okubo)
What does a normal day at work look like for you?
A normal day at work?! There’s no such thing!! Life with Opwall is incredibly varied and no two days are the same. A couple of times a week I will go into a school to give a presentation about our work and try to persuade them to come and volunteer with us. On these days I will generally spend a few hours in the office in the morning answering emails, collating volunteer information, analysing some data, or reading through student dissertation proposals. I will then leave the office in the early afternoon to get to the school in time to meet the teacher and discuss the finer details before presenting to interested students - the exact timings obviously depend on where the school is, but the Opwall office is located in a field in the middle of Lincolnshire so you can be pretty sure that the drive will be at least three hours!
During the summer months things can get pretty hectic but the work is incredibly exciting - I generally get up at about 4.30am and then go down to prep the boats for the day’s activities. The first boat leaves at dawn and you get to see the amazing sunrise over the Caribbean! The first data collection dive is done before breakfast so as soon as the boat comes back it’s time to scoff a bit of food to keep me going for the next three dives. Diving finishes at about 2pm which is when lunch is served, and the afternoons are spent with students helping them with their projects and data analysis, and I often try to sneak in some of the more boring admin tasks that need to be done at this point. Dinner is at 6pm and then I normally give a lecture in the evening to everyone site which is over by 8pm - then it’s straight to bed ready to do it all again the next day!
What do you love most about your career?
I love the variety in my job as I get the opportunity to be involved in some really exciting research projects whilst travelling around the world meeting some fantastic people!
Jumping into the Caribbean (Photo credit: Alex Wilcox)
How would you like to see marine life and coral reef ecosystems in the future?
Now that is a big question!! Unfortunately marine ecosystems are among the least studied and most threatened environments on Earth. There are so many horror stories about the state of the ocean, and coral reefs in particular, that it is often difficult to remain optimistic, but there is hope!! In the future I would like to see people being fully educated about the wonders of the marine world and treating the ocean with the respect it deserves. In recent years, people’s awareness of the importance of marine ecosystems has increased and programmes like Blue Planet II are helping to increase the momentum of the ocean awareness movement.
How can everyday people help save marine and coral reef ecosystems?
The major factors threatening the health of marine ecosystems are happening on a global scale; rising ocean temperatures and ocean acidification are known as the ‘twin evils of global warming’. On an individual level there isn’t much that can be done to combat these - major change will only occur as a result of policy reforms from the world’s major polluting governments. However, the more pressure that is put on governments to take environmental issues seriously the better - sign petitions, write letters and lobby as hard as you can for change at the top and we might make some progress!
Durable plastics in the ocean are wreaking havoc as they are consumed by unsuspecting marine fauna - turtle, fish and seabirds are especially badly affected. People should reduce their use of disposable plastics and make a concerted effort to use alternatives where possible. People should also be making sure that any fish they buy is sustainable!!
If you could dive anywhere in the world, where would it be? Why?
All of my diving so far has been in the warm waters of the tropics (it’s a hard life I know!), so I would love to try something that is a complete departure from what I know. While I have always been too much of a scaredy cat to dive in the UK, I want to plunge into the frozen waters of Antarctica - diving in that crystal clear water with a whole host of alien-like creatures would be a dream come true...
