Concrete jungle where dreams are made…
Every year, the annual Our World-Underwater Scholarship Society event weekend is held in the City that never sleeps, New York. This year we celebrated the 51st anniversary and I still can´t believe what I lived through during this time. Being in New York felt like a dream, surrounded by enormous buildings and very busy streets. It reminded me of my home, Mexico City, but at the same time, it felt very different. New York is an iconic city, and I got to live my biggest dream here.
During the OWUSS weekend I met the 2024 cohort and listened to their presentations and loved to hear what amazing things they achieved, which inspired me to aim for big goals on my year. I also met many members of the OWUSS family and felt very welcomed by everyone. The community is one of a kind and I feel super grateful to be a part of it. At the awards ceremony I was presented as the 2025 North American Scholar and it was a moment I will never forget. It hit me that what I was living was real and officially, my year full of learning and adventures had begun.
After a wonderful weekend of celebrations, I was invited to be part of Blue Generation program at the Explorers Club. Blue Gen is a symposium to celebrate World Oceans Week, held for young people interested in ocean-related careers, where the objective is to share knowledge and experience and gain tools to face the current challenges our oceans are facing.
Our cohort was made up of professionals from various countries with different backgrounds, but all wanting to learn more and fight for our blue future. We had lectures, discussion panels, workshops and field trips, with topics ranging from ocean governance, marine protected areas, conservation, NGOs and academia, ecotourism and many more!
One of the highlights was being invited to the World Oceans Week inauguration at the United Nations Headquarters. There I had the enormous pleasure to meet Her Deepness , Dr. Sylvia Earle. Having the chance to talk to her was another dream come true; her wisdom and courage are truly admirable. One of her phrases that struck me when I asked her about her opinion about gender inequality in diving was “The only thing men can do that women can´t, is grow a beard on their face”. Her strong personality and determination have helped her become a true underwater leader and an inspiration for me and many.
The whole week was incredible and after it, I felt motivated to keep fighting because many people around the world are doing the best they can to change the tide. It was an amazing start of the journey ahead.
A big thank you to Our World-Underwater Scholarship Society for giving me this dream opportunity. Thank you to all my sponsors: Aqualung, Drysuits Unlimited International (DUI), Faith Ortins/Blue Green Expeditions, Fourth Element, and Backscatter for giving me the gear and tools I will need during my year.
