Meet Dowla F Al-Suwaidi
She is a postgraduate from the University of the West of England in Bristol UK were she earned two Masters in Environmental Consultancy and Wildlife Conservation in Practice. In 2022, Dowla reached out us to learn more about the lionfish and their impact on the coral reefs.
Dowla is from the middle east where not everybody knows how dangerous these fish can be in other regions, and how was easy it is for them to adjust anywhere in different waters. Here she worked on her dissertation project studying why lionfish are considered an invasive species and different methods of management, while in her last years in UWE-Bristol. Additionally, she was able to document the first dive testing of the submarine in Florida-Keys with both members of the lionfish central and she was the first passenger to dive in the newly designed submersible.
For her part, she was able to spread awareness and teach different groups of people at the science fair in the UK when presenting her dissertation project. As a result, many people became educated on how these fish caused damage in the Caribbean and the Atlantic reefs. That was Dowla reached back out to us to contribute and play a role in spreading awareness globally.
Dowla traveled all the way from Qatar to join this unique course, Introduction of Submersible prepared by captain Scott Cassell and Myself (Mr. Scott Gonnello) on 16th of March 2023. She said it was worth the 20 hour flight and 9 hours on the road. She recommended this course to people globally in hopes they would join and learn more about the submarine, as she believes this course will open up new doors in marine conservation practices. It will help spread awareness, promote the marine life, help discover and protect the undiscovered depth.
Dowla helped by designing the technical page for the submarine anatomy diagram for the submersible course, as well as contributing good images to attract viewers on social media and incorporating these images into the course book. Plus she played a role in designing the new project “Lionfish expedition passport”, by adding the needed logos and layout works for the lionfish central, providing new ideas and feedback to make it better in the future.
Dowla is currently working on designing a program to allow different student both locally and abroad to join the courses that will teach them about the invasive lionfish, as well as learn how to get involved in protecting and maintaining healthy reefs, help in spreading awareness and knowledge throughout the world.