How did I get here? The short version of my story.
Well, its a long story. But I think I the idea grew from the time I was 6 years old and I had a "Flipper" themed birthday party that I wanted to be a marine biologist. When I watched "The Voyage of the Mimi" in my fourth grade science class, I was certain about it. And as absurd as "marine biologist" sounded next to all of the "doctors" and "lawyers" in my middle-school classes, as many times as outsiders told me "well there is no money/there are no jobs in that," my close friends and family were always explicitly supportive of my dreams and ambitions.
Once I started my Bachelors degree in marine biology, my passion for marine conservation grew and it wasn't until I decided to spend the summer abroad in Costa Rica getting experience with conservation that the sea turtles came into the picture. And then I fell in love. Not just with the sea turtles, but with the entire experience of it. The rustic lifestyle, the passion, the hard-work and manual labor, the international community of volunteers and scientists, the connection between land and water, the connection to the bigger picture of marine and wildlife conservation.
![](https://d3t9s8cdqyboc5.cloudfront.net/images?path=43124/Rdlolz0XTYqfkmuh1bpP_first%20turtle.jpg&width=650&height=)
(This is a photo of me after one of my first sea turtle sightings ever. The little blotch in the right part of the photo is a turtle butt. We took the photo after the turtle was finished nesting as she was returning back to sea.)
While I take pride in being branded the "turtle lady," my work with sea turtles is not just about sea turtles; it is about marine conservation and connecting people with nature. My work is about conservation biology, community outreach and education. The turtles are just a charismatic organism that I have the great privilege to study and have access to as a tool for inspiring change!
To read more about me and my story, visit my website and especially my blog post titled "For the love of turtles."
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