Hello friends! I am so incredibly honoured to have been chosen as the 2017 Australasian Rolex Scholar, of the Our World Underwater Scholarship Society (OWUSS). My name’s Mel, and l come from a little city on the east coast of Australia called Newcastle. I’ve got a small background in conservation and research, and you can read more about that here if you like! As a fledgling marine scientist/conservationist, I cannot wait to spread my wings this year as I explore the fields that I wish to pursue as a future career. This wouldn’t be possible without all the amazing people involved in OWUSS, the amazing sponsors of OWUSS, and my incredible coordinator Jayne Jenkins.
For me this year is going to be all about exploring which career path I’m most interested in. I have an intense love for those clever little zooxanthellae that help build the colourful castles under the sea that we know as coral, however I also have an interest in cetacean ethology, which is essentially the study of their behaviour and how that affects their survival, evolution, habitat use and fecundity. Ultimately I’d like to assess how each interest could potentially survive climate change, whether it’s through learning the nitty gritty science of coral recruitment and development, or through discovering how marine mammals pass new skills to younger generations in an attempt to adapt to an ever changing world. As a bit of a newbie in the dive world, this year is going to be incredibly rewarding for my diving career, and I hope to complete as many courses as possible under the sea!
The whole application process and month after I had been selected for the scholarship was an absolute whirlwind of activity, from me crashing my car on the way to the interview, to resigning from a full-time position at Taronga Conservation Society Australia working with seals, sea lions, penguins and occasionally sharks and turtles, to moving back home with my parents (I can assure you my parents are thrilled about this). But all those bitter sweet endings to the life I knew were quickly put aside to make way for a whole new world I was about to be exposed to.
My first event as the incoming scholar was a function at the Balmoral Boat Shed with the ANZEC chapter of the Explorers Club. It was here that I realised the incredible society I was joining, and finally got to meet some of the amazing people I would be sharing my year with. I can’t thank everyone there enough for the warm welcome, it truly was an amazing introduction to the society.
I then had the pleasure of attending the OzTek Dive show, which showcases not only dive centres/trips/products from around Australia, but hosts an array of experienced speakers to present talks on their areas of expertise. This was again another overwhelming experience, where I was constantly greeted and congratulated by more members of my new scholarship family. I cannot count how many times I said ‘I’m incredibly excited’, and eventually gave up on trying to find a bigger word then ‘excited’ because words honestly couldn’t describe how I was feeling. I was introduced to my amazing dive gear sponsors here, and a date was set to head over to the Tabata warehouse to pick out my gear.
Picking up my dive gear was definitely a surreal experience. The dive gear I have previously owned has all been second hand, and I was quite content to dive with whatever gear was available for the rest of my life as long as I was in the water. Never in my life did I expect to own so much dive gear, let alone brand new gear! David Balsom from Tabata and Jayne helped me navigate my way through the process of choosing wetsuits and a dry suit, as well as fins, mask, boots, BCD, regulators, computers and more. Trying on all the gear was hilarious, I managed to get stuck in a vest and hood, and had to brace myself against David while Jayne attempted to pull the vest over my head. There were moments where I didn’t think I’d make it out of the vest alive, and was forced to hold my breath as the hood was pulled over my face. I survived though, and opted for a bigger hood and vest. I can’t thank David enough for all his help.
The time to head off to New York was fast approaching, and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. My time in New York seemed to fly by once I arrived there though. I met my two new scholar-sisters, Mae, the 2017 European Rolex Scholar, and Leah, the 2017 North American Rolex Scholar. The girls were just as ‘excited’ as I was about everything, and together we ventured into the prestigious Rolex building to have our Rolex watches fitted. From there the events began, with presentations at the Explorers Club, meetings and dinners, we were whisked from one event to another. We were hilariously and unofficially crowned the 2017 OWUSS Rolex Scholars in a ceremony that involved sparkly ‘2017’ glasses and sashes that made us girls feel like prom queens. We were also presented with our safety gear from DAN (Divers Alert Network), however my SMB proved to be more of a hazard as it unrolled from my backpack whilst I was walking home, leaving myself and everyone around in stitches laughing as I tried to roll it back up in the middle of NYC. The big event however, was the formal awards night at the New York Yacht Club where we were officially crowned the 2017 OWUSS Rolex Scholars, and were presented with our watches, OWUSS flags, and certificates. We were introduced to so many incredible people over that weekend, and it was honestly so humbling to stand in front of so many of the talented photographers, conservationists and scientists that have inspired me to follow my dreams.
Whilst I was in New York, Jayne asked how I felt about going to Palau for my first project, and of course I said yes, so I headed home knowing that I was about to hit the ground running full speed into my scholarship year.
Once I was home from NYC it was finally time to test out my new dive gear and camera setup from Reef Photo and Video, so Jayne and I headed down to Chowder Bay with the wonderful Chris Miller. Jayne and Chris helped me to put all the pieces of my camera together like the intricate jigsaw puzzle it is, then instructed me on what settings would be best for filming with the macro lens. I thought I was ok at underwater photography until this moment. Trying to focus on the tiny sea horses and nudibranchs I found, whilst maintaining my buoyancy was incredibly difficult with my new camera setup. I opted not to post any of my brief videos I took during that dive incase I made anyone feel sea sick while they were watching them; they were very shaky and out of focus, but I can only improve from here right?!
Before I flew off to Palau though, I managed to sneak in a PADI nitrox course with Dive Centre Manly. This was a course I’d had on my ‘To Do’ list for a long time, and I had an absolute blast with the Dive Centre Manly team. We had incredible conditions down at Shelley Beach for our dives, with around 10-15m visibility, plenty of dusky whaler sharks around, and some wise old giant cuttlefish hanging around as well. Dive Centre Manly truly went above and beyond in regards to helping me with the course, not only did they ensure I felt completely comfortable testing my tanks, they also managed to help me navigate my new Tusa DC Solar Link dive computer, which I am incredibly grateful for!
I know my Nitrox course is going to come in handy for my first adventure in Palau, and I cannot wait to get back in the water!!
P.S. Here’s a photo of my hilarious sparkly glasses and unrolled SMB in the middle of NYC (they were too funny not to share)
