Dear Madni Family, I have never lived more than a stone’s throw away the Pacific Ocean. I was born and raised in San Diego, CA, completed my Bachelor’s Degree in Earth Science with an Emphasis in Geohydrology at the beautiful UC Santa Barbara, and currently work in Carlsbad, CA, where I drive by crashing waves on the sand every single morning. You may not be surprised to hear that I have a passion for protecting our oceans and coastal areas. I am currently working as an Environmental Compliance Inspector for Encina Wastewater Authority, a local government agency. In my opinion, I have landed a dream job for someone with a technical background who wants to protect the receiving waters of the United States. As part of my duties, I regulate and enforce the wastewater discharge from commercial and industrial facilities. The goal of my position is to prevent and/or limit the amount of pollution and contamination of wastewater from entering the collection system and making its way to the Pacific Ocean. The most common types of industries I regulate are metal finishers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, metal formers, and large scale rubber manufacturers. My position, along with the tens of thousands of inspectors in the US, combine efforts to ensure the sanctity of all oceans and marine life. In early 2022, I decided to further my education and pursue a Master’s Degree in Environmental Engineering, in hopes that I would be able to one day obtain a position where I could even further my impact on ocean and coastal conservation. I believe that one major key to protecting oceans is to reduce and possibly eliminate the harm from the source. There are more than 16,000 wastewater treatment plants in the US and most of which discharge treated water that ends up in receiving waters. As an environmental engineer, I hope to develop and implement advanced treatment technologies for wastewater treatment plants to more efficiently remove microplastics from effluent water. Modern day plants are not inherently designed for microplastics removal, a major pollutant of concern for modern day oceans. Obviously, it would be easier to stop microplastics at the source, by promoting plastics recycling or reduction. However, there is still room for improvement for technologies to help minimize the impact of microplastics that are making their way through wastewater treatment plants. I believe that education is the key to reducing the global carbon footprint. Will social media and the ease of spreading false information, gathering reliable information is not as easy as it sounds. Without a solid understanding of the impact of global warming, microplastics pollution, carbon dioxide emissions, or any other environmental hazard, why would anyone feel the need to reduce, reuse, or recycle. A clear picture of how detrimental pollution is would be the easiest way to convince someone that their actions could have a beneficial impact. An education opinion is always better than an uneducated guess. Ultimately, my goal after obtaining a Master’s degree is to help preserve and protect our oceans and beaches for generations to come. Without proactive technological advancement in wastewater treatment, population growth and current wastewater treatment practices will lead to unusable and polluted receiving waters for recreation and sources of drinking water. Thank you for your consideration for the Iftikhar Kamil Madni Science and Engineering Memorial Scholarship.