I always found the natural world fascinating. Understanding biology and the origins and manifestations of life is, to me, the most inspiring and spiritual endeavor (in the Spinoza, Darwin & Einstein sense).

So, unsurprisingly, I studied biology (specifically "Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering") for my bachelor's, and my first "real" job was as a research technician at the Center for Integrative Genomics (The Gibson Lab) at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

The Comeback

For many reasons, I ended up doing my master's and PhD in fields a bit too far away from the natural world and basic science. But now, as I finally have the capacity and resources to actually pursue this passion, I started doing a second master's degree (as a postdoc!) in "Ecology, Evolution, and Nature Conservation" at the University of Potsdam.

I would particularly like to combine this knowledge with my social/psychology research, find new ways to protect the natural world through a combination of science, education, and art. I would like to focus on protecting marine environments particularly in the Red Sea and Mediterranean, my home region, which is particularly threatened due to an extreme mix of climate change, pollution, and political turmoil.

Oh and did I mention that I am avid scuba diver and free diver? I have an advanced open water PADI certification and AIDA2 freediving licence.