\n<\/p>\n
My name is Samuel Suleiman and I am the Executive Director of Sociedad Ambiente Marino: an NGO in Puerto Rico that has been working for the last 25 years to conserve our coastline and our reefs. During the OCEANOS internship, I am one of the Co-PIs (a co-instructor) for the project, and I\u2019m in charge of the marine ecosystem in Culebra Island. \u00a0<\/p>\n
The OCEANOS internship is pretty important for those students that don\u2019t have the opportunity to go directly to our natural resources. Puerto Rico is an archipi\u00e9lago \u2013 an island surrounded with other small islands \u00a0\u2013 and most of the population that we have on the island doesn\u2019t appreciate or understand or protect our resources, because they haven\u2019t had the opportunity to learn about it. OCEANOS provide this experience for these kids and also allows them to grow in different areas; not just in the in the lectures and the information and the marine science data, but also about working together as collaborators.<\/p>\n
They have become more confident in the water compared to where we started, and they have start collaborating amongst themselves in their different research groups. They have also been changing their minds and attitudes, [which is] what we need for a better Puerto Rico and a better world.<\/p>\n
I started in science because I wanted to be a pediatrician when I was a kid. I started in the Natural Science College at the University of Puerto Rico, then I changed to education in science. And I try to mix together my experience from the past: I almost drowned when I was five years old. Instead of paralyzing myself with fear of the water, I tried to explore, and I have been exploring since then; since I was five years old. Every time that I have the opportunity, I learn something new from the ocean.<\/p>\n
I think that we have to create a new kind of people that protect our resources. People that are willing to take what is needed to make a better world, and a better Puerto Rico.<\/p>\n
I hope they feel a sense of belonging with the ocean, our coastline, our beaches, our resources, our reefs, our marine ecosystems. And I hope they can be ambassadors of these places.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n