Rachel Martin

Rachel grew up in West Haven Connecticut on Long Island Sound and has always loved being outside in nature, swimming, camping, and beach combing. Rachel received her B.S. in Biology from Eastern Connecticut State University and after graduation worked for the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station with the Invasive Aquatic Plant Program tracking native and invasive species of freshwater plants. Shortly after she had an opportunity to shift to marine science and moved to Marathon Florida in the Keys to work for a nonprofit, field focused, educational facility. She taught and led educational groups on fish ID, invertebrates, habitats, and in snorkeling excursions. It was during this time she became SCUBA certified and fell in love with diving. Rachel went back to school and received her Masters in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences from the University of Florida focusing on Marine Protected Areas of Guam.

Most recently she became an AAUS Scientific Diver through the University of Alaska Southeast in Sitka where she fell in love with cold water diving and helped create baseline benthic ecology inventory for the National Park Service, Totem Park, as well as track the invasive tunicate Didemnum vexillum for Alaska Fish and Game. In her free time, she enjoys underwater macro photography, participating in triathlons, creating marine inspired stained glass, hiking, traveling, and spending time with her dogs.