Hi, I'm Alexa Stefanko

Hi, I’m Alexa Stefanko. I’m 12 years old and live near Burlingame, California. I love climbing, snorkeling, swimming, bird watching, and reading. I want be a marine biologist and specialize in animal communication in the seas. This year, I'm an Official Explorer for the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

For the past two years I have been working to support the Coyote Point Museum, a museum dedicated to educating children about the importance of protecting the environment. Last year, a group of friends and I organized the Environmental Fair and Auction for the museum and this year we are planning a Swap O Rama Rama (SORR), Fashion Show and Green Auction. At a SORR you transform used clothes into wearable art (founded by Wendy Tremayne and described at swaporamarama.org) and then you get to showcase your designs at a fashion show. I also served as a Leader-In-Training helping out at the museum’s summer camps.

I had wonderful time at Shark Days at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and can’t wait for the next event! First, we met last year's explorers: Ayla, Eduardo, and Sierra. They told us all about their experiences as Official Explorers and what to expect for the year. They were all incredibly helpful, and very interesting to talk to. I was amazed and inspired by how committed they were to protecting the underwater community.

My favorite part of Shark Days was meeting last year’s explorers. I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to work with them again. Shark Days was also my first opportunity to work with my colleague, the other 2008 Official Explorer, Simon Willig.

First, I listened to a presentation, which was given by Dr. Steve Webster, a senior biologist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. During the presentation, he told us all about his various shark encounters, from having a flipper nibbled by an enormous whale shark, to encountering the peaceful reef sharks in the waters of Fiji. He also explained that sharks aren’t the vicious and dangerous creatures we constantly hear about from the media. He taught us that sharks are normally passive and completely essential to a healthy ecosystem.

Did you know that more people die from falling coconuts every year than from shark attacks? A very enlightening statistic! I was most curious about what I could do to help protect sharks. After reading the Seafood Watch cards I learned not to eat sharks because their populations are so unstable. I was also reminded how important it is to never litter or pollute because ultimately much of the trash and pollutants make their way to the oceans.

Another fun part of Shark Days was the craft tables. I helped the participants create stamps of ocean creatures to put on their postcards (and even created a few of my own). I also worked at the event booth greeting visitors, handing out information about Shark Days and answering questions.

This year as an Official Explorer, I’m excited about absolutely everything! I can’t wait to meet new people, learn about our precious oceans and how to protect them and share that knowledge with others.

Comments

[JasonR]

Alexa: congrats on being named an Official Explorer for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Look forward to more posts from you and Simon on the SeaNotes blog. Good luck.