By Aria Kerebs

My name is Aria Kerebs and I am a 20 year old girl from the little rural village of Puriri, outside of Thames. I am currently in my third and final year of a Bachelor of Science majoring in Ecology and Biodiversity and am set to complete my last semester at the University of Hawaii at Hilo!

While I have been on overseas holidays with my family before, this is my first ever solo adventure! The University of Hawaii at Hilo appealed to me as a budding ecologist due to the unique environmental composition and various microclimates across the “big island”. As someone interested in biodiversity, the big island of Hawai’i seemed like an obvious choice for an exchange.

I hope that the time I spend in Hilo will enable me to grow and become more confident in myself as an individual.