The environment has shaped me into the person I am today, as growing up in nature has pushed me forward to a career path of environmental science. Hiking, camping, and playing outside growing up led me to the hope of becoming a scientist, focused on creating a positive impact on the world that has shaped me. I am working towards becoming a wetland scientist, an ecological feature that is invaluable for the cleaning and regulation of the areas they are found. I am incredibly fascinated by these ecosystems and rarely feel the same peace that I do working and engaging in these features. My studies are not only leading me but also placing me directly into the world of environmental protection. I currently have worked on multiple projects monitoring the health of wetlands around me, and I take a focus on the impacts the changes these systems go through result in. Wetland science is incredibly important for climate change work, as wetlands are massive carbon sinks. Focusing on the protection and restoration of them can create more effective systems that lead to carbon sequestration and high photosynthetic rates, both removing and keeping carbon out of the atmosphere. Thus far, I have found important data on how urban areas negatively impact these systems and have taken actions to participate in and lead cleanups of marshes and wetlands in my community to improve the overall health of these wetlands. Through the paths I have taken, the best piece of advice I can give to others who want to reduce is to take it one step at a time. While easier said than done, changing your habits one at a time with little changes daily can create a tremendous impact. Finding the things in your daily life that aren't necessary and swapping them for more environmentally conscious choices, or removing them entirely, can almost immediately reduce your carbon footprint. Limiting artificial intelligence use daily is one aspect I highly recommend for my peers in this age: cutting down on searches for information easily accessible somewhere else can conserve the high amount of energy required for these searches. Other easy transitions I have tried to implement in my life and shared with my peers are incorporating meatless meals and ensuring you have the materials (ex: reusable bags, silverware, and water bottles) to limit daily use of single-use plastics. Taking the conscious effort to ensure lights and electronics are turned off in the home when not being used has been a big effort I encouraged my roommates and family to focus on. Taking the time and effort to switch your thinking to be slightly more environmentally conscious can have incredible impacts, especially if you share and encourage the people in your life to do the same. Through personal changes and changes of those around you, there can be a much broader impact in lowering personal carbon footprints and overall protecting environments we live in and love.

My name is Ollie Mercer. I am 18 and love the ocean, in fact, my favorite animals are sharks. I have always loved the water and couldn't wait to visit my grandparents in Florida to go play in the ocean. I also have always known I've wanted to do something to change the world positively since I was young, specifically in a way to influence the environment. I always had fears of the negative climate change coming our way and as soon as I could research this, I desired to become a marine scientist. This fall, these dreams are becoming a reality. Studying marine science will allow me the tools to search for breakthroughs in the way we protect our environment. I intend to find ways to reduce the global footprint created by our society. My goal is to become an ocean conservationist. The ocean is one of, if not the most, important aspect of the earth. Emission levels are becoming scarily high, leading to coral bleaching and the death of algae. In my career, I want to reverse this to keep the oceans healthy as they are the largest carbon sink. If the waters can be protected from irreversible pollution or extinction of organisms, there is hope to bring the entire world's temperature ad greenhouse gas presence down to a safer level. Through the research of these organisms and their interactions with different factors of the environment, both living and non-living, I may be able to find new scientific approaches to reversing the changes in our atmosphere. As a kid, I was always worried about the changes happening within the environment and I want to create change to prevent any future generations from having the same worries. No one should have to stress about the consequences of climate change, whether it's a child worrying their favorite animal may go extinct from the lack of resources or the daunting fact an adult's beachside home may be submerged by rising ocean levels. My career path is aimed to prevent these from arising. Combating climate change is not only for the health of the planet but the health of people, in whatever way they may be affected. I want to keep people safe from lung cancer at an early age from tropospheric ozone, but I also want to keep people safe from the anxieties of knowing that's a realistic situation. Through marine science, I intend to create change in all aspects relating to the ongoing global climate crisis. By focusing my research on the largest producer of oxygen I can find ways to reduce, and hopefully reverse, these changes. In doing so I can change the world for good in more ways than the obvious. Of course, this would allow for a healthier environment, but also a healthier population across the world, more people with less stress, and in my personal world, I can finally achieve my lifelong wish to change the world in a positive way for all.

As a child, I always knew I wanted to become something that would help to change the world. I've always been very conscious of how my decisions impact the environment and decided to become a marine science to help save one of, if not the most, important resource on the planet to help create a better life for future generations. I want to preserve the earth we have because it is so beautiful and absolutely one of a kind. I want to keep it pristine because once we lose something of the earth, it is impossible to get it back. I do not want future generations to be constantly worried about losing their home or having their home transformed into something no longer recognizable as the wonderful planet we currently have. I have always been worried about losing the things I love so much: the trees, flowers, gardening, fresh air, sea creatures, a clean ocean to dive in, but I have always been too young to cause any real change in protecting or preserving these. I absolutely refuse to let my children worry about these things when they should be enjoying them. I want to preserve a strong and healthy environment for everyone who feels powerless in their pursuit to keep their home beautiful. Studying marine science will allow me the tools to search for breakthroughs in the way we protect our environment. I can also study the changes the oceans go through based on topics such as air or water pollution or the changes in global temperatures caused by emissions of greenhouse gasses. I can study how different marine organisms prevent the world from becoming overpolluted by carbon or methane gasses. I can use my studies to find ways of preventing our earth from hitting a point of no return health-wise, whether through breakthroughs or current practices becoming more advanced, I can use our oceans to combat the effect gasses have in not only the waters but also in the atmosphere through my education on the makeup of the ocean and it's inhabitants. Although no one person can change the effect on our environment perfectly, educating as many people, especially loved ones, on how to reduce their carbon footprints can help. Personally, I attempt to do so through small and easy changes in life. Something as simple as using reusable shopping bags can prevent the need to dispose of bags and the need to produce more, which are two carbon-producing actions that can be easily avoided. Another easy change in one's life is eating less meat. Having one or two days with meatless meals can prevent hundreds, even thousands, of pounds of carbon emissions from feeding, producing, and transporting the product. I'd also recommend carpooling if possible or using public transportation when traveling to work or other common places, or considering biking or walking shorter distances. This can make the difference between hundreds of pounds of carbon emissions and, possibly, none. Whether these changes are made daily, or once a week, tons of pounds of carbon emissions can be limited per year. Small changes lead to big differences if you take the time to educate and convince people to consider changes, or by leading by example and doing them yourself.