草莓视频

Natalia Lopez Figueroa

Dr. Natalia L贸pez Figueroa, Assistant Coordinator 

Institution, Major and Hobbies 

I am a 2025 summer graduand from the 草莓视频 College of Marine Science, earning a Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography, focused on Marine Ecology and Coastal Management. I hold a Master鈥檚 in Biology from Hampton University and a Bachelor鈥檚 in Natural Science with a major in Coastal Marine Biology from the University of Puerto Rico, Humacao campus. My hobbies include crafting, Zumba and spending time with my dog, Marina.

Research and Career Interests

My current career interest is to become a professor to continue working on research in coastal zone management. It is imperative to integrate research in management to track the effectiveness of our management plans and ways to improve those management plans implemented. The world is changing and thus our oceans are too. The part of the ocean humans is mostly exposed throughout their lives are the coasts, for food, housing, or recreational purposes. Managers often plan using projections of the future from 2 years to 100 years, but due to climate change we are experiencing these projected changes sooner than expected. This is why we need research to aid in management practices, two fields that don鈥檛 often see eye to eye. I want to follow the legacy of Margaret Davidson and create collaborative research to aid management practices keep up the pace with these changes. For the longest time I wanted to become a coastal zone management director, and though this is still part of my career goals, I love research and see a way it can be combined with my other passion. Studying the coastal environment to not only help the environment but also aid people who depend on this resource and those who will be more susceptible to these changes. By becoming a professor, I will be able to train the future generations of both research and management, science with purpose. I am very passionate about mentoring and teaching, which is why being in academia I can encompass all my career goals and help our beautiful and essential coastal environments. I also aspire to host my own Research Experience for Undergraduates in the future, hence working for a second year in the Making Waves REU is an enriching professional experience preparing me for the future.