FROM WATER TO WONDERS

My Journey as an Explorer-Scientist I wasn’t born into a life of exploration, but looking back, maybe it was always in the cards. I was born in Miami, Florida, a vibrant city teeming with life and opportunity. But at around two and a half years old, my family moved to a quieter place—Plant City.

Nestled in Hillsborough County, it has long been an agricultural hub, known more for strawberries and pastures than spaceflight and scientific frontiers. Yet it was in that humble environment that my fascination with the natural world began to take shape.

Growing up in Plant City offered me the kind of quiet that makes a young mind wander. The flatlands, the farm plots, the scattered woods—they all told stories, and I was eager to listen. That early exposure steered me toward studies in agricultural and natural resource sciences, disciplines that helped me make sense of the world around me. It wasn’t until I was about 24 that the spark of something greater caught flame. I stumbled upon articles and documentaries about things like the looming 2050 Water Crisis and speculative technologies that could reshape life on Earth—and maybe beyond it. These weren’t just abstract concepts. They were calls to action. I realized that science wasn’t something that just happened in labs or lecture halls—it happened in deserts, glaciers, rainforests, and eventually, I hope, in orbit. That awakening set me on a new course. I began to read voraciously and committed to learning something new every single day. 

Whether it’s a journal article on hydrology, a lecture on planetary geology, or even a podcast on the ethics of space colonization, I try to dedicate at least one hour daily to broadening my scientific and philosophical horizons. That discipline has become my quiet ritual—my way of staying ready for whatever comes next.

By 2020, I had started to act on that vision. I headed to Iceland, where I led a graduate school capstone project on atmospheric moisture harvesting—essentially pulling clean water from fog. That experience, set against Iceland’s otherworldly landscapes, cemented my desire to merge scientific inquiry with exploration. I wrapped up my academic journey by earning a Master’s degree in Soil and Water Sciences from the University of Florida. From there, doors began to open. I’ve been fortunate to participate in scientific expeditions across Europe and Africa, working on projects ranging from bioassessments in natural reserves to water security efforts for remote villages. Whether I’m knee-deep in a wetland or hiking to collect samples from a mountain lake, I’ve found my purpose in the intersection of fieldwork and frontier.

Now, I stand at the edge of another dream. 

My ultimate goal is to become an astronaut—not for the title, but for what it represents. To me, space is the final canvas, the greatest stage for scientific discovery and human resilience. I don’t just want to leave Earth; I want to represent it—to carry its hopes, lessons, and questions into the cosmos.

Exploration is no longer just a word in my vocabulary. It’s the rhythm of my life. Every day I learn, every week I work, and every year I aim higher. This path didn’t come from

a single event, but from a thousand small choices—from reading one more article, asking one more question, or taking one more step into the unknown.

And I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.