Eureka Amadea, AYANA Komodo's marine biologist: "We know that when we protect our oceans, we are protecting our future."

LABUAN BAJO, FLORES, INDONESIA - OCTOBER 2019 - Local Jakarta native, Eureka Amadea, has joined AYANA’s dynamic resort team to ensure underwater prosperity around the resort’s coastline.

After receiving her Bachelor of Science from the University of Indonesia in 2017, as well as becoming a licensed PADI Dive Master and certified Reef Check Trainer, Eureka worked as a project scientist on a conservation project on Arborek Island in Raja Ampat for two years: “Raja Ampat is at the heart of Indonesia’s Coral Triangle and I was very fortunate to sail on a liveaboard as a marine scientist while exploring all of the different topography and diversity around Arborek Island.”

One of Eureka’s main projects at AYANA will be growing the resort’s coral nursery, located in the calm waters surrounding the hotel jetty’s mid-section. A healthy reef is vital to keeping the tropical fish population abundant, and providing guests with an easy way to snorkel right off the jetty. To spread awareness about the fragile nature of the area’s reef system, Eureka is launching a new education program at AYANA Komodo Resort to help inspire future marine scientists.

“We will have ongoing activities for the guests and their children to participate in,” explains Eureka. “With each experiment and exploration, we will teach them about how the ocean works, as well as how it’s changing. For example, our current topic is ocean acidification. I’m also very excited about getting guests more involved with our coral nursery by inviting them to help me with reef surveys and growing new corals to transplant in the ocean.”