Raffles 1887
A curator's day... with the marine biologist at Raffles Maldives Meradhoo
Marine biology is the study of marine life, and a marine biologist might work as an educator, an instructor or a scientist. At Raffles Maldives Meradhoo, EMILIA ANDERSSON does a bit of everything. The resort has two stunning house reefs and it’s her job to help guests experience them in the best possible way. She is also tasked with monitoring their precious reefs through regular surveys and research. Here she describes her typical day.
7.00am
My working day normally begins with early-morning snorkelling. It’s an early start but one of the best times to see the reef. Then I have a quick shower and breakfast. Afterwards I try and spend some time on research and the monitoring of our reef. I take weekly water quality samples, including temperature, salinity and pH levels. I also survey the reef by monitoring the coral cover and coral diseases. We are always working on ways to protect our reef better, and have some exciting new projects coming up.
10.00am
This is a great time to get guests in the water. I spend around 30 minutes briefing guests on the five most common fish on the reef, how to identify them and why they are so important. Then we go snorkelling for an hour. It’s a lot of fun. After learning about the reef in more depth, many guests view it differently, as if they are seeing it for the first time.
2.00pm
After lunch I host weekly training for colleagues working at the resort. We have 150 staff and everyone’s actions have an impact on our precious ecosystem. I hold workshops, give short talks and sometimes circulate an educational message internally. The subject varies depending on seasonal events and news.
I focus this on our marine butlers on a practical level too, taking them snorkelling and explaining what we call sustainable snorkelling: how to snorkel without negatively impacting the reef. They themselves will be sharing these valuable messages with our guests. Why we must avoid touching or standing on the corals (it damages them); why swimmers should apply sunscreen at least 10 minutes before they go in the water (as the chemicals in sunscreen can be toxic to coral; rash vests are preferable); and why they must never chase the turtles (it stresses them out).
4.00pm
We are a resort, and guests are always my priority, so in the afternoon I might organise more guest snorkelling or join one of the resort’s excursions to another reef. Three times a week I drop in on the kids’ club. We usually go to the beach where I explain about seashells and why we must not pick them up, even the empty ones. The kids are always amazing – they ask all the right questions and are very eager to learn.
6.00pm
At sundown I often head for the Long Bar and chat with guests about what they’ve seen that day. We have 25 resident sea turtles – we’ve named all of them and I help guests identify which ones they’ve met. If it’s not one of ‘our’ 25, they get to name it themselves. Sometimes they’ve been lucky enough to spot something really rare, such as an ornate eagle ray, or even a whale shark.
As the resident marine biologist, my goal is for everyone to leave the Meradhoo islands having discovered something about the reef they didn’t know before. I often hear guests describing it as ‘another world’. It really is like that.
Raffles Curators are to be found - in different guises - in many Raffles destinations, fostering authentic connection between guests and communities through their skills and knowledge.
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