Meet Teresa: Reef-World's Communications Officer

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Written by Reef-World

Name:  Teresa Moh

Nickname: 

Little one, Tressi, Mohmoh, Popetje

Where are you from / Where do you call home? 

Penang, Malaysia. Yes, one of the world’s greatest street food city. 

What are you best known for?

Stubborn! That’ll be the first thing my friends will think of, but I’d like to think they mean I’m determined instead. That’s because I won’t stop talking about the ocean and environmental issues we face and how we should all make more effort to protect the planet and in return protecting ourselves of course. 

What’s your background?

I studied graphic & multimedia design, it had nothing to do with marine conservation. For years I’ve worked for advertising and publishing companies until I started scuba diving and that changed my life. I went on to become a divemaster, then scuba diving instructor and was given a great opportunity to manage a dive resort. All those experiences have brought me here to Reef-World!

My buddies and I all passed our PADI Instructor Examination (yay!)

What inspired you to get into marine conservation?

From my open water diver course up to open water instructor course, I was trained by instructors that were passionate about sharing their diving skills and knowledge for the ocean. I was working alongside dedicated colleagues that want to give back to what we love and making a difference in a positive way to the ocean as divers — the ocean ambassadors. Witnessing the beauty and destructions in our ocean first-hand on a daily basis made me pledged that I will do all I can to protect the ocean so the beauty and importance of it can be preserved for future generations.

What brought you to Reef-World & why do you care about the work we do? 

When I decided to study graphic design I had one thing in my mind: I wanted to change the world with important messages presented beautifully. I didn’t know what to change about the world, but becoming a diver has put things in perspective for me. I became a dive professional so I can share and pass down my knowledge directly to my guests and students. After years of being in the diving industry, I realised I could use my skills and experiences to make a difference by spreading awareness and knowledge to minimise our environmental impact as ocean visitors. So, when Reef-World had a job opening for Communications Officer, I jumped on the opportunity in a heartbeat!

What one piece of advice would you give to someone wanting to get into the marine conservation sector?

Know that you don’t have to be a marine biologist to have a marine conservation career. If you have the passion to protect and preserve the ocean, go for it! This sector needs a broad range of skills and knowledge, think of what you have and how your skills and experiences can contribute to conservation. It is a competitive sector, but don’t give up and keep trying!

Outside work, what are your hobbies/favourite pastimes?

Scuba diving was my job but I never got bored of it. I’ll take any chance I get to be blowing bubbles but that’s obvious. Besides diving, I love travelling, exploring new places and meeting new people. In my free time, I practice yoga (appreciate the stretching after hours of staring at the screen), paint and watch too many sunrise and sunsets.

What’s something you’ve done, but will never do again?

In desperation, I’ve gone on a boat ride back to the island where I am based during the monsoon season and very unfavourable weather conditions. This is how much I’d rather be stuck on an island than in the big city. I’m glad I did it to get back to the island but I will definitely NOT do it again!

What’s your favourite marine animal and why?

This is tricky, but if I really really have to pick one, I’d say manta rays. They are really smart (they have the largest brain to body ratio of all fish!), inquisitive and graceful. I’ve only seen my first manta about 3500 dives in and I’ve been very lucky to be seeing them on a regular basis where I worked in Sangalaki so I’ve had many special encounters with them. Whenever it is possible for me to be on a manta dive, I’ll help MMF take ID photos of the mantas too.

Waving at a passing by manta

What marine animal are you most like and why? 

I’d say seahorse. I’m tiny and I like to eat (lots!). 

When and where did you qualify as a diver? What made you want to try scuba? 

I did my open water course in Perhentian Island, Malaysia in 2013. I’ve always loved the water and I remember as a kid I was intrigued by a person that could stay underwater for such a long time while I can only hold my breath for 5 seconds. Then I saw the tank behind… When I started earning money and had too many annual leaves to clear I knew what I had to do. Best decision ever because it changed my life completely. I fell more in love with the ocean which led me to learn more about it so I can protect it.

Tell us about your most memorable dive… 

But there are so many! If I have to pick one it will be the dive where one of my diver and I helped untangled fishing lines from a manta. We were on the surface waiting for the boat to pick us up and while waiting we popped our heads underwater again to watch the mantas below us. One manta particularly caught our eyes as we saw fishing lines trailing behind him. He seemed to be “waiting” for us below so we descended and tried to approach him slowly. The whole time he was flapping gently allowing us to cut the lines off him and when the lines are cut he swam away and came back around as if to say “thank you”. It was sad to see the manta tangled in fishing lines but so incredible to experience their intelligence first-hand and able to help.

& one diving destination still on your bucket list? 

I believe every time you dive in a new place meeting new dive buddies, you’ll keep adding to your bucket list. Never just ONE dive destination left on the list. But... Tubbataha Reef in the Philippines is right on top of my list.

Star sign and how you express it:

I had to google this, I’m a Sagittarius. A relentless wanderer, curious and energetic. Yeah, that’s me! 

If you could have one superpower, what would you choose and why?

Teleportation! To have the freedom of movement to be anywhere at any time. Imagine all the dive destinations I get to visit and carbon-free travel.

What’s the strangest injury you’ve ever had?

I don’t have many injuries besides the ones that I clumsily tripped over myself and graze my knees.

 Tell us something most people wouldn’t know about you? 

I was terrified of cats all my life until recently. I had severe asthma as a child and was kept away from anything that collects dust or shed fur so I’ve never got in contact with furry animals, not even teddy bears!