Ocean Heroes
She’s Seen the Light
Giant clams and blue starfish led Dr. Edith Widder to a career path investigating bioluminescence in the deepst parts of the ocean.
So diving trips to Fiji may not be typical for most western children, but the wonder wasn’t lost on Edith ‘Edie’ Widder it fueled a passion and some major career accomplishments like being named a MacArthur Fellow, induction into the Women Diver’s Hall of Fame and co-holder of the patent on the instrument that the U.S. Navy considers the standard for measuring bioluminescence in the world’s oceans. “When I was 11 years old I got to visit Fiji with my parents and I was fascinated by all the amazing creatures I saw on the reef, things like giant clams and blue starfish and lionfish.” It was that simple. Oh, and her first deep dive made the single-person submersible Wasp. “When I turned out the submersible’s lights I saw bioluminescence everywhere I looked. I was hooked. The experience changed the course of my career.”
There was such thing as a ‘career path’ in bioluminescence but it didn’t matter. Widder changed her research focus and is now considered one of a very few experts in the field. “A lot of my research revolves around answering questions like how many marine animals are there, how are they distributed and how do they behave. In order to be good stewards of the ocean we need to know these answers. At ORCA, Ocean Research and Conservation Association, the organization I helped found, we are developing technological solutions to ocean conservation challenges. Some of these involve the use of bioluminescence as a means of monitoring ocean health.”
Need we say more about why Dr. Edith Widder this month’s Squid Words Ocean Hero?
IT’S A FACT
80% of all pollution in seas and oceans comes from land-based activities.
