The Diversity Project aims to increase the participation of
underrepresented minority students in the biological sciences
using research and field work on the diverse coral reefs of the
Coral Triangle with cutting-edge molecular genetic research.
Fourth-year UCLA undergraduate student Andrea Chan had
experienced the rush of scuba diving in the Pacific Ocean, but
never imagined the sheer vastness of marine life that she would
one day encounter off the shores of Bali, Indonesia. “I just
couldn’t get over it – it was like watching a national
geographic documentary,” says Chan, who spent part of her summer
conducting research and gaining valuable international
experience in one of the world’s richest underwater playgrounds.
“I’ll never forget how I felt the first time I snorkeled in
Tulamben, and I suddenly found myself surrounded by a huge
school of fish as a ship wreck loomed below me. It inspired me
to work even harder to succeed as a marine biologist.” Chan was
one of six American students who travelled to th