Nov 22 - NextGen Diaries (come to the GUE conference with me!)
Part 1 - when you realise that this is indeed not a dream
“So, you’ll be going on stage at the very end of the conference to be officially announced, and you can introduce yourself and say a few words?” Jarrod asked me. This was around 4pm, and so it meant I was on stage in just over an hour. Of course I laughed (mainly because Nico kept joking with me that I was going to go on stage, and I didn’t really believe him) - and said yes of course!!
Outwardly, I tried to maintain an air of enthusiasm; however, inside I was secretly terrified. I had never given a speech on a podium with so many people and cameras before - but that didn’t bother me (we could cope with speaking spontaneously to cameras). What terrified me was the fact that I was speaking to everyone at the actual Global Underwater Explorers Conference 2022. In other words, I had spent the entire day (and actually the entire weekend) with extreme imposter syndrome. I guess everyone says this at some point in their lives - but here, I was genuinely in a state of “how is this my life right now”. (And honestly, I have been ever since Jarrod surprised me in my “interview” zoom call a few months ago).
Personally, I think that there must have been SO MANY people that were more deserving of this scholarship than me: they had done more, had more dives, more experiences with the agency etc… so why the heck me?? I guess part of me was afraid that; when I stood on stage, these would also be the thoughts of everyone else as well. Of course, this was not the case - loads of people came up afterwards to tell me what amazing experiences I have had, to congratulate me, or to offer help for my journey ahead. These boosts made me even more determined to make this year a success. However, I suppose it was easy to see the inception of my imposter syndrome, when one looked at the line-up of speakers we had.
Image credits: Alice Bennett
Part 2 - the Global Underwater Explorer’s Conference 2022
The biennial (plus-one-year-delay-due-to-covid) Global Underwater Explorers Conference was a chance to bring together the very best GUE divers in the fields of photogrammetry, scientific diving, remote diving physiology and more in a weekend of social events and lecturers. As a young expedition scientist, my scholarship application focused on the use of scuba diving for exploration, and so the whole theme of this year’s conference (stemming from the new Project Diver curriculum that took place beforehand, see here) suited me perfectly! I have always admired this agency, for combining high-level dive training with scientific projects, and it was amazing to hear about endeavours from all over the world.
For example, Beto Nava, a GUE instructor and engineer, shared his experience of finding the bones of a 13,000-year-old girl called Naia whilst cave diving. The problem-solving ability to find a way to document these bones, and bring them out for specimen identification, was super interesting. Todd Kincaid, one of the founders of Project Baseline, talked about the combination of rebreather divers, scientists and submersibles in the 2016 survey in collaboration with Nekton. And Fritz Hanselmann talked about the benefits of conservation of marine protected areas and preserving historically important wrecks (who incidentally was also a professor of underwater archaeology, and my roommate!). There was also time for social events to make connections. A 12km fun run gave me a chance to meet some of the members before the conference, and evening drinks under the stars and fairy lights was also welcome. And on the same vein of friends, I made some for life! Especially Nico Lurot (head of GUEtv and videography), who I got on like a house on fire; spent more or less 24h together, and we are already planning UK road/diving trip.
The reason why I was there, was to develop connections and to be presented to the worldwide agency officially as their NextGen Scholar! The NextGen scholar is a year-long scholarship that is designed to provide free GUE courses for a year, in whatever capacity that looks like. Supplemented with an allowance for travel and equipment, this scholarship is truly designed to catapult a candidate ahead in their dive journey - turning what would take years (of saving up as let’s face it, diving is extortionate), into months. Read more about it here and for 2023 updates.
Image credits: Alice Bennett
Part 3 – the 2022 GUE NextGeneration Global Scholar
The great thing about this scholarship is that you have the flexibility to make of it what you will. There is no right or wrong way to complete this scholarship - after all we are all in our own scuba journey, and those differences and diversities should be celebrated! For example, I could not be more different from the 2019 scholar Annika. Coming into her year with hundreds of dives under her belt, Annika was already a dive instructor, and a member of the GUE community for many years. She balanced her scholarship courses alongside working-full time, and then dealing with a global lockdown, subsequently completing all her courses in New Zealand (rec 3 and tech 1). Check her out! www.annikaandresen.com/
For the record, I have no interest in tech 1 (shock). I have recently passed 100 dives, and only was introduced to GUE very recently (using a BPW in Rec Fundies for the first time!). I have not been diving regularly, as I was working in Saudi Arabia on an expedition vessel (read more about me below), which has now ended. In this life-transition-period, I plan to commit a few months being “full-time” on this scholarship - travelling to places in Europe and the Middle East where I am / have been situated, and then (when money runs out hehe), seeing where the journey takes me.
But maybe that was the reason why I was chosen. I was open and honest about my weaknesses, the lack of diving this past year before my application was submitted; what I aim to work on, and my goals for the future (being realistic as to how long they would take). Instead, I showcased my other strengths and experiences; not realising that maybe the authenticity of actually admitting I’m “not the best diver and need help” was unique. A few people expressed their surprise and admiration for sharing this. Personally, I’m just being me.
Image credits: Mario Tadinac / OceanX dive team (middle)
Part 4 - my NextGen bio (maybe this should have been mentioned first)
So, I’m Jenn: the 2022-2023 NextGeneration Scholar for Global Underwater Explorers. I am a scientific illustrator, PADI Divemaster, and diverse field researcher specialising in the exploration of extreme environments. Living in Saudi Arabia for the past year, I have returned from a 5-month at-sea mission onboard the OceanXplorer, working as a logistic co-ordinator and expedition scientist for the eDNA, deep-sea coral, and megafauna teams.
I hold an MSc in Marine Ecosystems Management (University of St Andrews), but also studied Mandarin, shark cardiac ecophysiology, and computational modelling. In addition, I am an Honorary Research Fellow for past work in small mammal socio-ecology, attended a microgravity summer school at the European Space Agency, and has radio-tracked everything from elephant shrews to elephants. As an ambassador for sea-to-space company Blue Abyss, my future goals include becoming a scuba instructor, and experiencing parabolic flights. Ultimately, I aspire to work in both expedition vessels and Neutral Buoyancy Labs - connecting the space and marine sectors via diving and exploration! See my bio here.
With GUE’s focus on community, conservation projects and skill refinement; I aim to highlight roles that recreational scuba can play in scientific operations - and inspire the next generation of divers! Thus, my potential goals for the scholarship year are Rec 2, Photogrammetry, Documentation and Scientific Diver courses, as well as starting to work toward an Instructor rating. Let’s see if we can make this happen!