The ocean is my place of serenity- cathedrals of sandstone cliffs and a choir of gulls and sea lions. I was fortunate enough to grow up near Moss Landing, California at the mouth of the submarine canyon. Family trips to the tidepools were free of charge, but so rich in enthusiasm and dense in wildlife.  The exposure to such wildlife as a youth was undoubtedly the source of such a strong enthusiasm during my academic career. It wasn’t a grueling decision to choose what I was going to study. Experiences like those family trips made selecting my major an easy choice. It felt like it was decided for me.

During my college years, I got a job a part-time job at the very same kayak company my family would be patrons of, leading people on tours of the same docks, sloughs, and creeks that I had grown up being impassioned by. The more university courses I took, the better a tour guide I became. With a mix of natural history interpretation and formal academic knowledge, I was able to relate to non-scientists and convey intricate biological principles in a digestible and understandable fashion.