Ellen Hudson

Name: Ellen Hudson
Age: 28 (2023)
Nationality: United States of America
Current Profession: Reef Restoration Associate, Coral Restoration Foundation
School & Major: Rutgers University, Bachelor’s of Science in Directed Marine Sciences
Programme (s) completed at CCMI: 3-week Coral Ecology Internship through Rutgers University
Year programme was completed at CCMI: 2016

How did the CCMI programme you completed help you develop professionally and/or personally? “At CCMI I learned core scientific techniques that I still use at my current job. This involved laying transects and analyzing quadrats on the reef to collect bleaching and disease data, taking that data back to the lab/office to organize it into a presentable matter, and I learned how to organize scientific projects among a group of other students. This experience was my first-time diving for scientific purposes and it made me a MUCH better diver.”

What is something you learned while at CCMI that you have never forgotten? “CCMI was where I was first introduced to a coral nursery and it is a memory that I will never forget. I always knew that I wanted to work with corals, and being able to visit their nursery and even outplant my first corals was truly a life changing experience for me. It pushed me to continue to pursue coral ecology, even though I knew it was a competitive field, and led me to the job I have now (and love).”

Is there something that you do differently now, because of what you learned at CCMI?“At CCMI, there were lots of opportunities for us to help out the other researches at the station working on their own research/ thesis projects. Because of this, I had many opportunities to expose myself to other research that was happening and was able to gain more experience in different areas. This is still something I do at my current job. Working in the restoration department at CRF, we mostly deal with the maintenance of our coral nurseries and outplanting those corals to different reefs throughout the Keys, but whenever an opportunity arises in the science department or education department that will further build my skillset I try to take advantage of it and get involved.”

Please share with us a favourite memory of your time at CCMI. “I have so many amazing memories from my time at CCMI. My favorite memory was one I already touched on, which was my first time in the coral nursery. However, another favorite of mine was simply being able to dive every day at the various reefs around CCMI and seeing all of the live coral coverage. Seeing that amount of live coral was something I had never seen in my life before and it was truly beautiful. I also became close with everyone else that was part of my study abroad group and loved all of the “after work” activities we would do (dodgeball on the tennis courts, the Little Cayman scavenger hunt, biking to the bar for trivia night, too many to choose from!)”

You can contact Ellen to learn more about her CCMI Internship experience here: [email protected]

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