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Title
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Dr. Enric Sala
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Type
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Primary: Host Researcher
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Operation
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Resilient Planet
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Mission:
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Mission 4: Paradise Found
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Subjects
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Science
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Grades
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5 | 6 | 7 | 8
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Keywords
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Dr. Enric Sala, Spain, scuba, Jacques Cousteau, Calypso, undersea, coral reef, Mediterranean, ecosystem, over-fished, degraded, University of Barcelona, fish, desert, University of Aix-Marseille, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Sea of Cortez, Wildlife Conservation Society, Belize, Nassau grouper, ecology, Pacific Ocean, Aldo Leopold Leadership Fellowship, Line Islands, Center for Advanced Studies of the Spanish Research Council, scientific researcher, Pew Fellow for Marine Conservation
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Duration
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00:00:00 (HH:MM:SS)
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Audience
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Teachers | Elementary Grades | Junior High
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Created On
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3/10/2008
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Copyright
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Peter Haydock, The JASON Project
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From: Resilient Planet Mission 4: Paradise Found |
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Dr. Enric Sala Read about Dr. Enric Sala, a Host Researcher from Operation: Resilient Planet. |
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Dr. Enric Sala
Host Researcher,
Ecologist,
National Geographic Emerging Explorer,
Madrid, Spain
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Born and raised on the Mediterranean coast of Spain, Dr. Enric Sala was always close to the sea. He was snorkeling by the age of 6 and was using SCUBA gear by 18. Enric's biggest influence was Jacques Cousteau and he even had a goal to be a diver on Cousteau's ship, Calypso. Watching Cousteau's undersea videos puzzled Enric. The aquatic environment on film showed coral reefs full of color and diversity. That was not what Enric saw on the bottom of the Mediterranean. Empty of color and fish diversity, Enric soon realized that the Mediterranean ecosystem was over-fished and degraded.
Enric knew that to reach his goal to be a Calypso diver and to understand how humans affected the oceans, he would have to study how nature works in the sea. He went to the University of Barcelona and researched the effects of fishing on the Mediterranean Sea. He compared fish populations within a marine preserve to unprotected waters and discovered that over-fishing turned the ocean bottom into a "desert."
After obtaining his PhD at the University of Aix-Marseille, Enric did his post-graduate project at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. He fell in love with the Sea of Cortez and worked there for 10 years. For the first time, Enric saw the beauty of the Cousteau documentaries that impressed him as a child and worked hard to protect the underwater treasures of the Sea of Cortez.
In 1999, Enric worked for the Wildlife Conservation Society off the coast of Belize. He studied the Nassau grouper and was thrilled to see over 3,000 of them, but was then horrified to learn that not long ago the population was over 30,000.
At Scripps, Enric worked on historical ecology and learned what oceans were like before human activity. This understanding provides a baseline from which to study the influence of human activities. He organized an expedition to the Line Islands in the Pacific Ocean to study coral reefs off islands with different human populations.
In 2005, Enric received the Aldo Leopold Leadership Fellowship where he trained to communicate science using a less academic language. "To raise awareness and create change, you need a simple message that is backed up with detailed science," Enric declared.
Today, Enric is a scientific researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of the Spanish Research Council. He is a National Geographic Emerging Explorer and Fellow, and a Pew Fellow for Marine Conservation.
Dr. Sala recommends that students who wish to pursue studies in aquatic ecology should first go to nature. "Discover what is on the planet. When you go to nature, you will be living out of the 'Matrix'. Experience nature on your own, first hand," Enric advises.
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