Thread by @jana_serrano

Thank you @IWS_Network for giving me the opportunity to share my #story 💜 ! This a part of Voices Without Frontiers program iwsnetwork.ca/voices-without… #IWS #WomenInSTEM #VoicesIWS #ecology #conservation #biodiversity

I was born in #saopaulo, #Brazil’s largest city, very different from the #Amazon Rainforest & Rio! See me and a #samauma, the most famous Amazon tree 🌳
Also me & @IsabelaHissa in front of Sao Paulo’s #MASP (Modern Art Museum) & me and my mom in #Rio! #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

I can say I lived in a great #rainforest because Sao Paulo & most of the coast of Brazil are in the Atlantic Forest 🌴🌺🐍. It is one of the 34 world’s #hotspots of #biodiversity, with more than 1500 plant species and 90% of original area loss. #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

#Janaína is one of the names of #Yemanja, the Queen of the Ocean & the feminine principle of creation in #Candomblé and #Umbanda #african-#brazilian religions. On Feb 2nd, every year, thousands of people throw white roses into the sea to her as an offering. #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

A huge % of #Brazil has #African origins & that has a great legacy in our #culture, #language & daily habits. A lot of us have a #diverse ethnical background, as we were colonized by Portuguese people but #indigenous peoples have been there for millenia! #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

#IndigenousPeoples in Brazil once were 3 million people amongst 2000 #NativeAmerican #nations inhabiting what is now the country of Brazil, before European contact, which was very harmful. By 2010, ~817,000 Brazilians classified themselves as Indigenous. #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

We also have the world's highest number of species & the largest amount of fresh water in the world in 🇧🇷! #Amazonriver is the most voluminous in the world. Did you know #indigenouslands are the most effective protected area type for conserving biodiversity?#VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

Maybe that is why I was always so eager to get to know more about #nature and other cultures. As a child, I was always very curious, loved going to school & one of my favourite #books as a 4-year-old was about “Nature and Living beings”. #minibiologist #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

I was a #basketball player since I was 9 years old & it was harder to conciliate practice with studies as I was finishing #highschool. In Brazil, you can get into a top #university & pay no fees, but only if you pass a really competitive exam #vestibular #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

I didn’t know what to study at #uni, so I decided I'd go abroad. Seeing other cultures might help me decide. My family couldn’t finance it so I got a scholarship by @afsbra to go to #Turkey for my 3rd of high school in #Science. 17 year old me was brave! #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

It was a challenge, but I blended very well in the #community & spoke very good #Turkish. I would even pretend I was Turkish sometimes, just to get discounts 😅.
I grew a deep affection for Turkish people, my #hostfamily and friends from all over the world🌍#VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

When I went back to Brazil, as I was already very concerned about #environmental issues, I chose to try #Biology. I was not very sure about that being the best #career path for me, after all, what is the view of the general public about Biologists?👩🏽‍🔬 #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

Despite my parents’ disbelief, as I had spent the last year in #Turkey, after studying for one semester I was accepted at #Brazil's most prestigious University: the #UniversityofSaoPaulo #USP @usponline & found the best #friends I could possibly find!👩🏿‍🤝‍👩🏽👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏼👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

On each semester of #uni I had a favourite course: #philosophy, #anthropology, #neuroscience, #genetics, #evolution, #ecology and so forth. How could I choose a favourite one? They were all so great. I realized I didn’t see myself studying anything else. #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

At the Biological Museum of @butantanoficial, producer of #Covidvaccine in 🇧🇷, I did my #undegrad thesis on an activity that people could touch #snakes, #frogs & #spiders. I could see how #scienceoutreach and #education make environmental & social changes #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

Towards the end of my #undergrad period, I understood that I could use my #knowledge & #skills to benefit the most precious & most fragile part of our 🌍 #planet: #biodiversity. The impact our species has will be probably irreversible if we don’t stop soon #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

In 2015, I got a fully-funded #ScienceWithoutBorders scholarship from the Brazilian government to go to #England to study #Ecology and #EnvironmentalBiology @UniofNewcastle & studied #forestfragmentation impact on #amphibian & #reptile species #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

After graduating, I had a very difficult year in 2017, when I lost my father and had knee surgery, I went with who would end up my #husband @felimabitencour to be volunteers at @parnajau #nationalpark in the Amazon, in the most amazing experience💚#VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

I decided to work in #conservation, #academic, practical knowledge & #publicpolicy to #protectbiodiversity. I started my Master’s in Ecology at @LaHNAB_UNICAMP , where I studied a disease is linked to the disappearance of #amphibians #chytridiomicosis #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

As a result of my #master’s project, we raise an alarming #redflag to #native #amphibian fauna, as we highlight that #humanimpact can be the main driver of the spread of a deadly #disease in the #Brazilian #AtlanticForest. #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

For my #PhD, I got a fully-funded scholarship in @mcgillu🐦in #Montreal #Canada. I am studying how to #protectbiodiversity with #protectedareas with climate & land-use change using #SDMs with @Lajosy0 at @BioMcGill qbiodiversity.org #VoiceIWS @IWS_Network

I'm also a Program Officer @asgbrasil1 @ASG_IUCN & writer/Slack coord. at @IWS_Network.
I hope to help #society and #biodiversity adapt so there's a #future for everyone!
Thanks to all #womeninscience & @IWS_Network! We're stronger together💜💪#VoiceIWS iwsnetwork.ca