Marine conservationist aims to raise awareness through technology

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As a child growing up in Arizona, Carissa Cabrera loved being outside. She’d go to parks with her sister and other neighborhood kids until the streetlights turned on. As she got older, she’d take swimming lessons and go to California beaches with her family – her first exposure to the ocean, which would become the focus of her life’s work. “I think that's where the fascination started,” says Cabrera, 27, a marine conservation biologist now based in Hawaii. But as a teen, it was an award-winning documentary that she watched for an AP English assignment that set her on her current path. “I know a lot of people get to marine biology without that distinct aha moment, but that was mine,” says Cabrera, who had focused on photography as a career possibility before watching the film. “It speaks to the power of films, and how much they can influence viewers’ mindsets.”

Though she had a scholarship to an in-state university, she worked as a waitress in college to pay her rent. Through her studies, she learned about the threats to the ocean, such as overfishing and oil spills, which really put her on track for conservation. But since she didn’t have the advantages of other marine biology students who attended coastal schools, she found opportunities outside of the classroom: working at a planetarium’s marine discovery lab, an internship at a zoo, joining her campus’ Marine Awareness and Conservation Society and trips to Mexico to do fieldwork in the ocean. She also saved up to study abroad and went to the Galapagos Islands. Her undergraduate degree was in evolutionary and ecological biology from the University of Arizona. https://blogs.windows.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/2/2021/11/R7A7212-200x300.jpgHer four-person team believes everyone can be a marine conservationist – and that you don't have to be a scientist to help. “Every single person has a role to play when it comes to saving our oceans and you do not have to wait eight years to get your master’s degree to start doing that. And honestly, we don't have the time for that,” Cabrera says. “It's an inclusive philosophy when it comes to conservation.” She creates environmental content mainly for her website, podcast and TikTok channel, where she shares tips on everyday ways to practice zero waste, sustainability and recycling. But she also shares snips of her life in Hawaii, her travels and the wildlife she encounters in the water, such as sea turtles. “You really want people to feel inspired by the ocean and excited,” she says. “And then you can start introducing the stuff we really need to take action on. But no one is going to protect anything they don't care about.” All photos except for Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i Pro standalone courtesy of Carissa Cabrera.

 

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