Women in science we admire
Sylvia Earle
Sylvia Earle nominated by Kathy Willis
Sylvia Earle has been a research associate at the University of California and a research fellow at Harvard University. In 1990, Sylvia was the first female Chief Scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and has been a National Geographic ‘explorer in residence’ since 1998. Sylvia and her husband established a research submarine organisation ‘Deep Ocean Engineering’. In 2009 she founded Mission Blue, a non-government organisation who’s aim is to form marine protected areas and raise awareness on the importance of protecting our oceans.
I discovered Sylvia during my undergrad years. Her relentless passion and determination for exploring and conserving our oceans was a major driver and inspiration for the research I do today. I became a scientific diver during my undergrad. Through my diving I have witnessed first-hand the damage humans are causing to marine and coastal life. Damage that particularly caught my attention was marine debris. Consequently I am now completing a phd on the prevention of marine debris. A quote by Sylvia which has stuck with me/inspired me throughout my research is “the ocean is the cornerstone of earth’s life support system…it’s the blue heart of the planet. We should take care of our heart".
Earle Sylvia 1991 MasterEdit Source: YouTube, Published on 3 Dec 2016 by American Academy of Achievement
