{"id":1457,"date":"2021-06-18T16:52:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-18T06:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.unsw.edu.au\/mathssciencechampions\/?p=1457"},"modified":"2024-05-23T10:42:57","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T00:42:57","slug":"a-marine-biologist-with-a-passion-for-coastal-management-meet-thay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.unsw.edu.au\/stemmchampions\/blog\/2021\/06\/a-marine-biologist-with-a-passion-for-coastal-management-meet-thay\/","title":{"rendered":"A marine biologist with a passion for coastal management: Meet Thay"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Charuni Pathmeswaran <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Thay is a marine biologist investigating the impacts of the 2019\/20 Black Summer fires on estuaries.\u00a0\u202fPrior to pursuing her PhD in Australia, she completed her Honour’s and Master’s degrees in Brazil. She has worked on projects involving population dynamics,\u00a0primary productivity, taxonomy, and ecotoxicology, with a special interest in coastal management.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"This<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What sparked that initial interest in marine biology for you?<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I knew from a young age that I wanted to become a marine biologist. My family\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0believe me at the time, because kids keep changing their passions. But I kept saying I wanted to become a marine biologist. I grew up by the beach. My dad would always take me to the ocean. I would spend hours picking stuff at the beach. I was always fascinated by the ocean and life underwater. The more I learned the more I loved it.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What excites you most about your work?<\/strong>\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This project excites me a lot because of its applicability. We had previously collected data from these estuaries. So, when the fires happened it gave us an opportunity to do an impact assessment. I like to know that I am working on something that is very important. I like the whole field of coastal management. I like the job of an environmental scientist, looking at the impacts of our activities on the environment. And learn how we can minimize that. This is what motivates me to do my work.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do you find most challenging about the work you do and how do you tackle it?<\/strong>\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My current work involves a lot of chemistry, and this is not within my expertise. I did a bit of chemistry for my undergrad, but my background is primarily in marine biology\/ecotoxicology. One of my supervisors is a chemist and he has a lot of experience in the area. So, he has been guiding me well.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does a typical day look like for you?<\/strong>\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This depends on which stage of my project I\u2019m in. Last month I had a lot of field work to do. On such days we would spend the entire day out in the field. We were four women driving massive trucks and towing boats around the NSW coast. Even our boating officer is a woman. It was very exciting! Very long hours in the field with a lot of heavy work is then usually followed by lots of lab work. Then statistics and writing, as well as attending workshops and conferences. It\u2019s very dynamic and we get to do a little bit of everything.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n