Grown in a seaside town in China, I was obsessed by the ocean since childhood, which eventually leads me to choose marine biology as my major. I got my BSc in Marine science from Xiamen University in China. During my undergraduate, I participated in multiple research projects which brought me to some amazing places around the world, including Malaysia, western Pacific Ocean and Svalbard Islands. Since then, I became fascinated by the coral reef ecosystem and converting my knowledge into practical coral reef conservation activities becomes my life goal. Therefore, when I was doing my MPhil in Hong Kong, my master thesis focused on the climate change effects on Hong Kong scleractinian corals which inspired me to think more about the relationship between coral-algae symbiosis, coral health and coral reef ecology. Therefore, I asked Prof. Manuel Aranda to join his lab as a VSRP to study this relationship in more depth.

I love the international and multicultural atmosphere at our lab and KAUST, so I hope there is an opportunity for me to be a PhD student here in the future.