30 May Aloha from Hawai’i! An Introduction to Samantha Garcia

Aloha everyone! My name is Samantha Garcia, and I am a new Habitat Restoration and Natural Resources Management Intern at the Kauaʻi National Wildlife Refuge Complex located in the Hawaiian Islands. To tell you a little bit about myself, I was born and raised in San Diego, California, where I learned to surf at 10 years old and fell in love with learning about the ocean, and the environment in general. After high school, I realized that I wanted to pursue a science degree in Marine Biology, so I packed up my bags and moved to Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi. Four years later, I am now a junior student at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa, where I get to pursue my dreams of surfing often while studying the ocean. This past year, I completed an internship through my university called the OPIHI Program, where I was able to study Ghost Crabs at the James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge. After that amazing opportunity, I applied for a summer internship at the Kauaʻi National Wildlife Refuge Complex through the Environment for the Americas and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Diversity Internship Program. Now, I just completed my first week here at the Refuge on Kauaʻi. and I’ve already learned so much about Hawaiian waterbirds! I cannot wait to share with you more blogs about my new journey!