Rita was born and grew up in Indonesia, the largest archipelago nation and a center of marine biodiversity in the South Pacific. She is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Los Angeles. Rita’s interest in climate change threatening coastal ecosystems began almost 15 years ago. Since Indonesia depends on the ecosystems inherent in the archipelago, which are in crisis, her interest on the impact of global warming on coral reef ecosystems framed her dissertation research in coral bleaching and coral symbiosis. Rita used her funds for field research in Indonesia conducting coral bleaching research in Manokwari (West Papua) and Weh Island (Aceh, Sumatra). After completing her Ph.D. Rita plans to continue doing research on coral reef ecosystems while teaching in the university. Rita is also a qualified AAUS Scientific Scuba Diver.