BlogMarine Conservation
MRCI would be nowhere without our dedicated team. We are ever so grateful for everyone, from our maintenance and kitchen staff to our conservation and community team members. This week, we would like to introduce you to Solly!
Solly is our fantastic MRCI Marine Conservation and Island Outreach Officer. He has always loved the environment, having grown up in the rural areas of Madagascar next to the sea. As a young man, he saw many people asking questions about the ocean and noticed a lack of understanding in local communities. This inspired his desire to learn more about the marine environment and to educate others.
As such, he went on to study for a Master’s degree in Marine Biology at the University of North Antsiranana (UNA).
Solly arrived at MRCI in 2019 to work as our Marine Conservation Intern. He progressed into the role of Island Outreach Officer, where he taught communities and volunteers about environmental protection as well as Malagasy language and culture. Due to his amazing attitude and enthusiasm, he was quickly promoted to Marine Conservation and Island Outreach Officer.
In this role, he built on the knowledge gained from his Master’s degree, learning more about coral reef ecosystems and fish. He particularly enjoyed this time and also conducted a coral reef monitoring project in collaboration with UNA.
Solly has become a truly invaluable member of our team. He is an excellent diver and has completed Emergency First Responder training, the PADI Rescue Diver course, and his PADI Divemaster qualification at MRCI. He is also trained in identifying fish, corals, algae, benthic invertebrates, and seagrass.
Thanks to his passion for educating local communities, Solly runs our staff environmental education programme. His favourite part of working at MRCI is learning the identification of coral reef organisms and conducting research on corals.
Solly — we’re so glad to have you as part of the MRCI team!
