Scholar Bio’s
OUR WORLD-UNDERWATER SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY’S 2013 NORTH AMERICAN ROLEX SCHOLAR;
Jeff Hester
Jeff Hester, 24, was born in Anaheim, California, and moved to Portland, Oregon, when he was 10 years old. He developed a love for the water early on and would dive for keys, coins or other trinkets at the local pool at the ripe age of 2. Growing up, Jeff developed an insatiable love of the ocean through books pertaining to marine animals or life at sea as well as visits to the tide pools at nearby Cannon Beach.
A yearning for exploration of the underwater world fuelled his desire to learn how to SCUBA dive after moving to sunny San Diego to attend Point Loma Nazarene University.
During his college career, Jeff competed on the varsity track and field team, earning All-American honors in the decathlon at the national championships his senior year. He interned with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in a coral reef ecology lab that was developing a non-invasive method to measure surface area using photography to create 3-dimensional models.
The following year, driven by his love for diving and marine science, Jeff sought opportunities for underwater research through the National Science Foundation-funded Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) programs. He was selected for an AAUS diving internship with the Shannon Point Marine Center in Anacortes, Washington, to survey and assess pinto abalone outplant sites in the San Juan Islands, as part of an effort to restore their population.
During that summer, he completed his advanced, nitrox, drysuit, rescue and AAUS scientific diving certifications. Since then he has added wreck and divemaster certifications to his credentials.
In his final year of college, Jeff conducted senior thesis research with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) investigating heavy metal concentration in the long-beaked common dolphin (Delphinus capensis) and how it related to their health. After graduating with a BS in Biology he was hired by NOAA as a lab technician in a marine mammal genetics lab. He uses genetic techniques to study Gray Whale and Beaked Whale population structure.
Through all of these experiences, Jeff has developed a passion for diving and marine biology. He is eager to work with leaders in these fields so that he can better understand the issues faced by the oceans and what we, as the human race, can do about them.
He wants to make a positive difference in this world and in the oceans that are all too often taken for granted, by instilling in others the same love and curiosity for the ocean that he has. He feels that he has the responsibility and privilege to share what he has been taught so that others may understand, love, and in turn, conserve.
OUR WORLD-UNDERWATER SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY’S 2012 NORTH AMERICAN ROLEX SCHOLAR;
Megan Cook
Megan Cook, 24, was raised in Boise, Idaho more than 500 miles from the nearest ocean. Growing up in an athletic, water-loving family, she developed a zest for adventure and respect and curiosity about the natural world long before the ocean came into her life.
An inspired first-grade teacher first fostered Megan’s ocean interest with crayon-scribbled current patterns, marine life stories and shell math. As other kids made “grown up plans” to become firefighters, business leaders, or sports stars, Megan knew she and the sea were meant to be together. At age 16, Megan was selected as the top international ambassador of a young women’s leadership organization. Traveling nearly 100,000 miles worldwide, Megan gained confidence as a spokeswoman and presenter and broadened her goals for the scale of impacts she hopes to make in the world. This experience will also prove invaluable to her Scholarship year as she is already an old pro at napping during layovers on awkward airport benches.
Megan graduated Magna cum Laude in 2009 from Oregon State University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, a minor in Chemistry, and an option in Marine Biology. During college she edited The Catalyst, a journal promoting undergraduate research, and walked onto two Division-I sports teams: rowing and equestrian polo.
Initially scuba certified in an Idaho freshwater reservoir, Megan bubbled her way to further confidence and PADI Advanced, Rescue, Drysuit, AAUS and Divemaster certifications in the temperate waters of the Pacific Northwest with the OSU Diving Program. Eager to explore more of the ocean, Megan became an international scholar on exchange to James Cook University in Australia. Upon her return, she enrolled with Sea Education Association, studying in Woods Hole, MA and later sailing a tall-ship research vessel from Tahiti to Hawaii. She worked in the reef fish ecology lab of Dr. Mark Hixon and spent a research season diving in the Bahamas to quantify the impacts of the Indo-Pacific lionfish invasion on native predators and communities. After earning her degree, Megan relocated to Hawaii to work as a freediver on NOAA’s Marine Debris Team throughout the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.
Her desire to make a positive contribution to the underwater world led her to work on the state’s aquatic invasive species team and as a trainer for the University of Hawaii Scientific Diving program and a community reporting network for coral disease and bleaching outbreaks.
The science and exploration of the ocean fascinate Megan, as does the communication of this knowledge. A scientific extrovert, Megan seeks opportunities to foster bridges between research, media, conservation, industry and exploration. She is especially interested in large-scale ocean issues such as marine debris and invasive species management because of the variety of stakeholders who can be involved in seeking solutions.
Megan has received recognition in university-wide and regional symposia, for most outstanding presentation and best seminar for ecology and marine biology. She seeks to explore photography and video documentaries as communication tools during her scholarship year. She believes the ocean is anxious to tell her story, and public awareness is the first step to creating change. Megan hopes to work with diverse groups to further understand and better communicate the wonder, vitality, and drastic changes alive in today’s underwater world in accessible, innovative ways.
Megan is humbled and enlivened to be spending this year among this prestigious network of underwater leaders and looking forward to learning absolutely everything she can absorb.
OUR WORLD-UNDERWATER SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY’S 2011 NORTH AMERICAN ROLEX SCHOLAR;
Christian Clark
Christian Clark, 23, was born in Atlanta, Georgia but spent his early years living with his family in Brazil and Canada before finally moving back to Georgia.
From the beaches of Southern Brazil to the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers to the central Pacific, the one constant in Christian’s life has always been water. He recalls that when he was about 5 years old, on a whale-watching cruise with his family, he saw a pod of belugas and had an up-close encounter with a huge Fin whale. It was from this point forward that Christian knew he wanted to be immersed in the oceans for the rest of his life.
During a family trip to Maui when he was 13, Christian discovered scuba diving and the wondrous Hawaiian underwater world. Consequently when it came time to go to college, his choice had already been made and he headed to the University of Hawaii (UH). After taking every ocean-related course he could find, Christian finally discovered Global Environmental Science, an interdisciplinary science program, and UH’s Marine Option Program. In August 2010 Christian graduated with a BS in Global Environmental Science.
Christian’s years at UH were packed with volunteer work, research cruises, and scientific diving. He volunteered at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology’s Shark Lab, where his duties ranged from cleaning shark enclosures to deploying/ retrieving underwater receivers to capturing and tagging sharks. He joined UH’s scientific diving class, later becoming an assistant trainer, and was selected for the rigorous diving field school QUEST (Quantitative Underwater Ecological Surveying Techniques), eventually becoming an instructor in this program as well.
Working as a research assistant in the Holland Pelagic Fish Lab, he helped quantify the movement of sharks and other apex predators around the Main Hawaiian Islands and Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. As a result of this research, Christian co-authored two journal articles. Christian participated in three research expeditions to Antarctica, where he studied climate change effects on benthic ecology. This research became the basis of his senior thesis as well as two more articles, which are pending publication. His presentation of his senior thesis project at a university-wide symposium earned an award for best science presentation.
Christian’s experiences in Antarctica led him to realize the importance of communicating scientific research issues and solutions to non-science people. He began filming and photographing on every research trip and attended a field school on environmental science documentary film production. He created a documentary on spear fishing and Marine Protected Areas which earned awards for Best Cinematography and Most Powerful Message. He later served on a joint committee of university and local media representatives studying ways to educate students and the public about scientific issues through documentary films.
He and the university chancellor had the honor of meeting with Senator Daniel Inouye and the Chairman of the FCC to communicate the results of this collaboration.
Christian has been diving for ten years and has logged over 320 dives. He is a Scientific Diver Trainer with UH’s Diving Safety Program. He earned his NAUI Divemaster certification in 2009 and has gained skills in underwater mapping techniques and technical diving. He is an avid sailor and boatman, and even lives on a sailboat. Christian is thrilled and honored to have been selected as OW-USS’s 2011 North American Rolex Scholar.
He hopes to explore possible careers which would combine his diving, research, and media communication skills to the best advantage. He is excited to jump into his scholarship year and wonders, “What if I could energize the public and politicians enough to actually make a change on a global scale?”
OUR WORLD-UNDERWATER SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY’S 2010 NORTH AMERICAN ROLEX SCHOLAR;
Joshua Stewart
Josh was born and raised in New York City, far from the sandy shores of the tropical oceans he now loves. His initial interest in the marine world was probably fostered by elementary school teachers who insisted on having “whale time” once a week, but his passion for all-things-ocean certainly developed during summers spent in the Caribbean, sailing, scuba diving and enjoying everything the turquoise waters have to offer.
By the time he was ready for college, Josh had decided that a career in marine biology was the only option. Little did he know that he would get his start at Indiana University, more than 600 miles from the nearest coast. During his freshman year Josh became involved with the Underwater Sciences Program and took his first scientific diving course. Recognizing Josh’s passion for marine biology, his professor directed him to IU’s Individualized Major Program, which would allow him to design his own degree program. Josh completed an intensive marine biology curriculum at James Cook University in Australia and was a member of several international field research teams working on underwater archaeology and biology projects in the Caribbean. In May Josh will become Indiana University’s first student to graduate with a degree in marine biology. He also has minors in Biology and Anthropology and a Certificate in Underwater Resource Management.
During his studies at IU, Josh worked on projects ranging from Marine Protected Area management to biological and ecological studies to anthropological investigations. He made numerous trips to the Dominican Republic where he was part of a team that excavated and interpreted Captain Kidd’s shipwreck, recovered extinct mammal remains in culturally significant fresh-water caverns, and worked to protect Columbus’s first settlement in the Caribbean. Josh’s personal research for his degree focused on coral recruitment on artificial substrates and methodological approaches to the management and monitoring of submerged resources. Josh has logged almost 300 dives and is a PADI Assistant Instructor. This past year Josh was hired by IU’s Office of Underwater Science as an adjunct faculty lecturer teaching scientific diving to undergraduates.
Josh is very interested in utilizing public outreach and education as a conservation tool, specifically through film and television. He has developed a passion for underwater videography which he hopes to use for conservation and the protection of natural resources by educating the public on a large scale. As a first step, in December 2009 he travelled to a remote region of Indonesia to film a documentary sponsored by Indiana University and Australian Geographic about modernization and its effects on the marine environment. Josh believes that the most pressing issue for conservation is a lack of public knowledge about the current environmental problems we face. He hopes to use the scholarship as an opportunity to explore different careers relating to conservation and to bring some of the most critical environmental issues to the attention of the public.
OUR WORLD-UNDERWATER SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY’S 2009 NORTH AMERICAN ROLEX SCHOLAR;
Myfanwy Rowlands
Myfanwy, 23, grew up in the gold-rush town of Nevada City, California. While many of her friends found themselves pulled to the snow sports of the nearby Sierras, Myfanwy was drawn to the Pacific Ocean. As a young child she was fascinated by whales and dolphins, so when she was fourteen she jumped on the opportunity to attend a marine biology camp on the island of Roatan, Honduras. She earned her open water diving certification that summer and her advanced open water the next. She returned to the program in Roatan four times, eventually receiving her NAUI Divemaster certification in 2005. Her Roatan experience started her on the path she has travelled since. Now, nine years and 400 dives later, she has added scientific diving to her underwater experience and has acted as a Divemaster in three different countries. Myfanwy finds the role of Divemaster immensely rewarding, particularly when she has the privilege of working with young divers and students.
Myfanwy attended Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles for two years before transferring to the University of California at Berkeley, where she is currently completing dual degrees in Marine Science and Conservation and Resource Studies. She is interested in finding common ground between the disciplines of biology, marine conservation, and political ecology. While in her third year of college, she studied abroad in French Polynesia and completed an individual research project examining assemblages of foraminifera in fouling communities. This past fall, she traveled to Papua New Guinea where she conducted coral reef conservation and management research with the Wildlife Conservation Society.
Myfanwy’s main enthusiasm outside of marine biology has been photography. She is very much enjoying teaching a Conservation Photography course at UC Berkeley this semester. She hopes to use her photography to bear witness to the marine conservation issues and ocean crises she encounters during her scholarship travels.
Although Myfanwy found her focus on the marine sciences early and has followed that path unwaveringly, she believes strongly that life is about achieving a balance of passions, and is constantly trying to find ways to juggle her many interests: music and songwriting, theatrical lighting and sound, volunteering, teaching, almost every kind of exercise, and yes, knot-tying. “As the essential shared natural resource, the ocean should be the gathering point for all countries and cultures. The Rolex Scholarship will help me discover what it is to play an active, significant role in marine conservation, by placing me side-by-side as an eager apprentice with those who are already making a difference.”
