I am in the second year of a bachelor's degree in Physics & Chemistry at @Durham University, with interest in researching interdisciplinary solutions to anthropogenic climate change and pollution. In my first summer as a Laidlaw Scholar, I developed biosourced polymers for use in laundry detergents, producing a compound with promising performance compared to industry standards. This summer I will be working with @Under the Wave Organisation to help monitor and run a sea cucumber farm to promote sustainable agriculture in Zanzibar.

Under the Wave is a small NGO collective founded in 2022 to protect Zanzibar’s marine environment. The team runs a sea turtle hatchery (over 2,000 hatchlings released since 2021), uses photo ID to track sea turtles, and provides environmental education directly to locals. Responsibilities & Ideal Background Learning opportunities include writing monitoring protocols, fish identification, and dolphin behaviour monitoring, alongside seeing how a small NGO operates. A good fit is someone in Marine Science or with a marine-related research background; those with social-media marketing skills can also contribute. LiA Champion Our LiA Champion is Nicola Mayer. Curious about this project but not sure where to start? They can share candid insights from their experience—what the work involved, skills that proved useful, and pointers for exploring a good fit. Please contact them via the Laidlaw Scholars Network: https://laidlawscholars.network/users/nicola-mayer Organisation Contact Under the Wave / The Living Ocean Email: yongmi@thelivingocean.org