Crew profile of Emily Duncan

“Emily, or Dunkers as we and most of her colleagues affectionately know her, is a woman of many talents. Not only is she a leading scientist in the field of turtle research and conservation, but she is possibly one of the funniest and most brilliant people you would ever be lucky enough to meet.

Growing up in the Cotswolds with her wonderful parents and cat Alice, Dunkers moved down to the coastal town of Falmouth for university where she studied ecology and conservation. It was here she got the opportunity to take a summer placement researching sea turtles in Cyprus, which would be the start of an incredible professional career in turtle research.

Having literally handed her PHD in weeks before she stepped on Sea Dragon, its been incredible to meet someone who has achieved so much at such a young age, despite adversity along the way, as her queen Beyoncé would say…she is a strong, independent woman.

Despite being one of the hardest working people on the boat, Dunkers still managed to find the time to make everyone laugh constantly, whether it was dancing to Sean Paul while cooking, playing ‘guess the animal’ on a 3am watch or goofing around with her partner in crime/science.

As well as making us laugh until our tummies hurt, Dunkers has taught us so much about plastic pollution and its affects on sea turtles. She is so passionate about furthering research in the field and helping communicate these issues to the public, so long as she can use her proficient design skills in paint.

We really can’t wait to see what’s next for Dunkers, hers is the world and everything in it! Its been such an honour to sail across the pacific with you, here is to many more adventures in the future.”