Dear Xiamen，
This is a thank you letter， for without you I would have never discovered my true calling。
I never planned on being an educator。 My focus had always been on science， and more specifically， animals – how to help them when they’re sick， how to save them from extinction， how to make sure they lived their best possible lives。 I also never planned on coming to China， despite it being the “ancestral home。” No， my focus and my future laid elsewhere。 Or so I thought。
In 2011， I moved to Xiamen to start a new job - as the development coordinator for COSEE China， the outreach division of Xiamen University’s State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science。 Not quite the future I had imagined。 Gone were the happy days spent working in the field tracking turtles。 Gone were the quiet days in the lab， processing samples and analyzing data。 My new life now centered around a desk and a computer where I would plan programs and events for the public all centered around ocean science and the marine environment。 Where I would spend days researching the best ways to teach complex concepts such as thermohaline circulation and ocean pH to 8 year olds。 Where I’d spend weeks training undergraduate volunteers in teaching and communication best practices。 Quite a shift from my previous life as a researcher。 And yet a transition I was happy to make。
“Why？” I can hear you asking。 Well， there were 2 reasons really：
- Because after years of studying animals and ecosystems， I realized I was never going to save the world； well， that Iwas never going to save the world alone （yes， in my younger days， my ego was THAT big）。 The world is a big place with lots of problems； the only way to save it is to get more people involved。 And that meant getting out of the lab and engaging with people。
- Because in Xiamen I saw a beautiful island， one with blue skies， clear waters， and sandy beaches。 I saw an island whose people are truly connected to their environment， and have been for generations。 But is an island in peril。 The waters were not so clear after all。 The blue in the sky was too often masked by a hazy film。 The sandy beaches hid more than the occasional crab or seashell。 I saw an island facing all the environmental problems the world faces today。
So， I shifted from researcher to educator without hesitation。 In doing so I discovered new challenges – how to devise creative and imaginative ways to explain science all while staying true to one of its guiding tenets： be true to the data。 I learned new and more effective ways of expressing science than what I had been formally taught。 I saw my own passion for the environment and Nature mirrored in the people who attended COSEE China events and programs。 I learned resilience in the face of overwhelming odds – if Xiamen can continue to fight against all the environmental crises it faces， then so can I。
Do I miss those days of crawling around in the scrub tracking tortoises， or those moments wading through the wetlands helping mark and recapture birds？ Yes。 Most certainly。 I even miss those days in the lab， wrestling with broken machinery and pleading with the gods of science to help me fix it so I could get my samples processed！ Do I regret my decision to leave that all behind？ Not at all， because I have gained so much more than I have lost。 And I have you to thank for that。 Xiamen has not only shown me the best ways to achieve my goals， but has come along that journey with me。 You have provided me with new insights and reaffirmed my belief that saving the world is not impossible。 I know that together we will win， and future generations will see truly blue skies， swim in clean waters， and once again enjoy in the wonder and bounty of our natural world。
