Developing a lifelong love for the ocean may not be the first thing that comes to mind when hearing someone was born and raised in Washington, DC, but it’s there that Sam got scuba certified when he was 13-years-old. After graduating from Yale College in 2012, he served as the Chief Operating Officer for ELI Africa, a Mauritius-based non-profit. There, he helped launch a coral-farming project in partnership with the Mauritius Oceanography Institute with funding from the United Nations Development Programme Global Environment Facility. During his time at ELI, he also created an endemic reforestation project, which was recognized with the 2013 Green Africa Awards’ ‘Highly Commendable Award.’ He interned for the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s Climate Preparedness team, served as a fellow for the Global Island Partnership (GLISPA), and was recognized as one of twenty two ‘Climate Trailblazers’ by the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit. Sam is an optimistic DC sports fan, an easy-going rugby player, and a PADI Search & Rescue scuba diver.