I’ve been obsessed with animals ever since I was little. I was always out in nature, exploring ponds and rockpools – my mum would even find me in the garden asleep with the chickens! Then when I was 14, we had an amazing family holiday to Canada where we went whale watching. The woman leading the tour – who coincidentally was from the same village where my parents got married – was explaining about her background in marine biology. I’d not heard of marine biology at that point, but something clicked and I knew it was what I wanted to pursue. 

Climate change and nature 

I studied for my Zoology undergraduate degree at University of Exeter, which included the opportunity to study in Sweden for a year. My time in Sweden was an amazing experience filled with other students from a really wide range of backgrounds. I studied a lot of subjects relating to climate change and its impacts on nature and wildlife. This definitely sparked a desire to keep studying – I wanted to explore more ways in which science and society interact around the climate change conversation. I also wanted to move to Bristol, so the MScR really ticked the boxes for me.  

My research project 

There’s been a lot of scientific investigation into how damaging trawling is. Studies have shown once an area is trawled, it can take at least a year before that site has recovered fully, often much longer. So, the short-term gain has long-term consequences not only to the environment, but for fishers too. So why does this practice continue to exist and be so popular? Who is it really benefiting? This is what I wanted to explore. I focused my research on UK coastlines around the North Sea. One section of my project focused on how fisheries policy affects trawling distribution and management. It quickly became apparent how complex this legislation is. Dissecting all the statutes and governing bodies that affect trawling in this area became one of my main project aims. I also spent a lot of time looking at the way we perceive the sea, and how our Western culture perspective might influence our conservation interests. I’m addressing a lot of questions: Is this sort of development desirable? Who wins and loses in trawling? By what mechanisms of power? And what do we need to do to do this sustainably?

The benefits of Bristol  

I predominantly chose the MScR with Cabot because I wanted to study something thoroughly on my own initiative, and incorporate both science and social study. The element of freedom was a big draw for me. But there have been lots of other benefits, like the skills development sessions. The storytelling workshop, for example, has really stuck with me and helped me think about the way we communicate our research. Having the chance to take part in the Challenger Conference and Blue Earth Summit has also been fantastic – both opportunities I wouldn’t have had access to if I wasn’t a MScR student. I got to meet some really inspirational and interesting people at these events. 

Hard work pays off  

The MScR is definitely challenging. It’s essentially like having a 9-5 job, so you need to be self-disciplined and motivated – and you need to choose a topic you’re passionate about. I experienced a lot of self-doubt along the way, questioning whether I’d chosen the right subject, whether my methodology was right, and so on. But my supervisors were very supportive and now I’m coming to the end of it, I can say I’m really proud of myself, not only for completing a 30,000-word piece of work, but for helping to raise awareness of important issues that are often brushed under the rug. I’ll be having a well-earned rest once I’ve submitted my thesis and then I’ll be looking for jobs where I can keep raising awareness and making a difference.