Hi there! My name is Sophie Kalkowski-Pope and I am incredibly excited to introduce myself as the 2023 Australasian Scholar of the Our World-Underwater Scholarship Society. After looking up to these scholars for such a long time I cannot believe it is finally me standing here in these shoes (or fins). These epic young scientists have inspired me for years, and it is such an honour to be considered within the ranks of a cohort of such talented ocean advocates.
I’ll be sharing my adventures this year on Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Tiktok, and the Australasian Scholar Facebook Page. But importantly, you can subscribe to this blog here!
My journey in the underwater world started in a very special part of our planet, tropical north Queensland, Australia. The land of reef and rainforest, I grew up in a small country town south of Cairns. I’ve been swimming before I could walk, snorkelling since age 5, and I obtained my open water SCUBA licence when I was 13. I was lucky enough to grow up diving on our family vessel, where we would take regular trips to the reef. Dad the faithful deckhand, and mum my dive buddy and underwater naturalist. How could I not get inspired about the beauty of our natural world?
My passion for marine conservation was truly catalysed in 2017, after witnessing the mass coral bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef. Diving amongst ghostly white corals on a reef I have been snorkelling on since I was a child was a powerful moment.
I felt awestruck, frustrated, and was compelled to take action. I went on to create a short film to present at my school and talk to my peers, and Local Marine Advisory Committee. Not solely concerned with the tropical realm, I also created a film about the Disappearing Kelp Forests of Tasmania and received a UTAS Marine Discovery Scholarship to experience temperate marine biology. These experiences were a foundational moment in terms of realising my passion for science communication.
Ps. I’ve always had a passion for photography and videography, whether with a GoPro, DSLR, or drone! In 2017 I was stoked to take out my first film competition, the Mission Beach Adventure Film Festival at age 17.
Eager to explore my marine interests further and learn what I could do to help, I undertook a Bachelor of Science/Arts at the University of Queensland. Here I studied majors in Marine Science and Geography, with minors in political science and communications.
During my university studies, I threw myself into every marine based opportunity presented to me. Whether it was snorkelling in the mud of Moreton Bay while seagrass sampling for Science Under Sail, or doing benthic data analysis after expeditions for Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef I was always happy to be in the water and learning new skills.
I also participated in a project through the UQ UniDive club, the Mooloolaba Ecological Assessment and Mapping Project where we undertook Reef Check Training and assisted to co-author my first research report. In a seperate role, I was responsible for social media communications for the Nemo Hotel Project.
While marine science is one of my passions, I also recognise the importance of political institutions to create societal change. This became clear to me during my two year involvement with the YMCA Queensland Youth Parliament. There, I met a diverse array of passionate, politically minded young people from all over Queensland. Over the course of a year, we developed our own legislation and debated it in Queensland Parliament.
Arguably though, the two foundational pillars of my undergraduate studies were the UQ Marine Society and my work at CoralWatch. I was lucky to serve as President of the UQ Marine Society in 2021. Here at MSUQ I was surrounded by a passionate executive team that worked hard to create a variety of events for our members. We took day trips to our local research stations, ran marine themed trivia nights, and connected people with networking opportunities. I feel proud of the marine science community we connected here at UQ.
I also worked for 2 years part time at CoralWatch, a coral reef conservation organisation and global citizen science monitoring program. In this role, I had the chance to educate communities about citizen science, climate change, and how we can protect reefs into the future. For me, the opportunity to go into schools and give talks about marine conservation was a beautiful full circle moment, as I remember receiving similar talks when I was in school. Through this role, I was stoked to have the opportunity to present at Woodford folk festival and at the Australian Coral Reef Society 2022 Conference.
After an absolute whirlwind of an undergraduate degree it feels surreal to be moving into this year of scholarship opportunities.
Looking forward
To me, the Our World-Underwater Scholarship is a lifelong dream that I believe will catalyse my ability to have a positive impact in the world. While I am young, and at the beginning of my career, I am confident the Our World-Underwater Scholarship will give me the opportunity to explore a diverse array of my passions and interests, and hopefully learn where to take my next step.
Throughout my scholarship year, I’m especially interested in:
- Building diving proficiency through scientific diving
- The art and technique of effective science communication
- The exploration of diverse career trajectories within marine science.
My interests extend across diverse fields. All the way from coral reefs to climate change solutions, blue carbon, management, policy, environmental activism, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, sustainable energy production, kelp carbon sinks, assisted evolution of corals, community based management, global food security, working with traditional owners, and marine protected areas. I think science communication to bridge the science-policy gap and educate the public is incredibly important and a skill I wish to develop further.
I’m also excited to experience a diversity of marine environments, in particular temperate ecosystems as I haven’t dived much outside of the tropics! In terms of dive training, I’m eager to explore new territory in scientific and technical dive qualifications. During my year, I hope to gain a range of different practical research and expedition experiences in remote locations.
Finally, the prospect of collaborating with photographers and videographers greatly excites me, as it would afford me the chance to delve deeper into the art of visual storytelling and cinematography – a field that I have been passionate about for many years.
In essence, my scholarship year is set to focus us on:
- Enhancing science communication
- Harnessing photography and videography for storytelling
- Undertaking hands-on expedition research
- Acquiring advanced scientific and technical dive trainings
These pursuits will be guided by the themes of:
- Climate change and solutions
- Environmental activism
- Community engagement
- Coral reef conservation
- Marine policy and management
If you have ideas or opportunities that align with these goals, please get in touch!
I am so grateful to OWUSS for making opportunities I would not have dreamed of before and broadening my horizons to a global scale. A special thank you to the countless volunteers behind OWUSS, and the sponsors that make this scholarship possible at ROLEX. I would also like to thank my equipment sponsors at TUSA, Waterproof International, Reef Photo & Video, Mako Eyewear, my camera gear sponsors at Reef Photo & Video, Nauticam, and long time scholarship supporters DAN, and PADI.
To follow along on my adventures, I highly recommend you follow me on social media!
My Instagram @sophie_dives is where I post most regularly.
You can also contact me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Tiktok, and the Australasian Scholar Facebook Page.
You can also subscribe to this blog here!
