This text is part of the special Feminine Leadership notebook
Assistant professor in the Department of Biology at Concordia University, Nicola Smith studies the effects of climate change on coral reefs and invasive species, such as lionfish. As passionate as she is determined, the researcher wishes to play the role of mentor and encourage the younger generations of the black community to enter the scientific and marine field.
Nicola Smith was born in the Bahamas, an archipelago of coral reefs located between Cuba and Florida. The powerful bond that unites her to nature and the ocean was built by her mother, a biology professor, who died of cancer when the researcher was only 16 years old. “Very young, she subscribed me to lots of magazines,” she remembers. On Sundays, the television was always tuned to National Geographic shows. It was that or nothing! »
Their conversations had an immense influence on the researcher. “When I said I hated mosquitoes, she told me they were important because they fed the frogs,” she continues. I later understood that she was explaining to me how an ecosystem works, that is, how different organisms depend on each other to survive. »
Many excursions to uninhabited islands south of the Bahamas still fill his memories. “My mother collected wild orchids that were endemic, meaning they were found nowhere else on the planet. She was so happy to bring them back to our garden, she says. Today, some of those butterfly orchids planted when I was 13 are still in the garden. His death and the numerous hurricanes did not succeed in making them disappear. »
After the disappearance of her mother, Nicola Smith left to study in Canada. Today, she aspires to serve as a mentor to young students, having only known one black teacher throughout her schooling. “When you understand that you are always the only black person in the room, it becomes very heavy,” says the woman who has experienced several depressions. We wonder if these spaces are made for us. Should we be there? It’s a terribly lonely experience. » The professor campaigns to lower these barriers and promote the inclusion of black people in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Lionfish passion
After a bachelor’s degree in English and zoology at the University of Toronto, she embarked on a master’s degree in zoology at the University of British Columbia to study marine dynamics and, more specifically, lionfish. Also called lionfish, this invasive and venomous species piqued Nicola Smith’s curiosity.
“I spent a year in the Bahamas as a research assistant in an environmental studies institute,” she explains. I was doing a lot of diving around the archipelagos, and I was constantly coming across this red and white fish, which was not native to the Bahamas, but rather to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. I wondered what impact this species could have on ecosystems. »
A doctorate and two postdoctoral positions later, she is still examining this animal. “The lionfish never left my mind, as if it had a great hold on me,” she emphasizes. The more I study it, the more questions I have. » The researcher wonders how the massive arrival of these scorpionfish in the Caribbean can serve as a “model phenomenon” to answer bigger questions about invasive species and the influence of climate change. She is specifically interested in the impact of extreme heat waves in water as well as ocean acidification, which reduces available oxygen.
Forging the new rules of the game
Nicola Smith was deeply affected by Dorian, a category 5 hurricane – the highest intensity – which killed hundreds of people in the Bahamas and destroyed numerous infrastructure. “When I saw the devastation, I understood that it was linked to climate change,” she says. I felt an obligation to study this, through biology. »
His most recent research results, which have not yet been published, suggest that climate change generally facilitates the arrival of invasive species, which reproduce and threaten more vulnerable fish with extinction. But questions remain. Will lionfish continue to benefit in this context? Which species will benefit more from these disruptions? Because if certain invasive species have access to more food with the increase in water temperature, acidification creates the opposite effect.
“Once we better understand all the mechanisms, I want to find how to mitigate the impacts and better protect the ecosystems,” explains M.me Smith. While current strategies will soon become obsolete, all the rules of the game must be reinvented. And Nicola Smith is determined to play a major role.
The 42-year-old researcher is particularly proud of her work with the United Nations in the Bahamas, after her master’s degree, which trained many local scientists in scuba diving research. To this day, this reef conservation education program, introduced by him, is still in place and is being passed on to new generations.
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