Gwenevere Persaud’s Stories, Lessons & Insights

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Gwenevere Persaud. Check out our conversation below.

Good morning Gwenevere, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Integrity is definitely the most important thing to me out of all of these. You can be the most energetic, or intelligent person, however, if you do not have integrity, then you may engage in dubious actions. You must maintain a strict moral compass in my opinion, and adhere to your own values as much as possible. Honesty, and transparency are incredibly important qualities to have in any field.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello Ladies and Gentlemen! My name is Gwenevere Persaud, and I am a marine biologist, executive director, podcast host, and inventor! I have an intense passion for the ocean, its ecosystems, and its wonderful creatures. Many people have said they have stars in their eyes, however, I have nautiluses in mine!

I founded a marine biological nonprofit organization, called The Persaud Foundation, based in Southern California. We are a marine biological nonprofit organization, dedicated to protecting the ocean through conservation, education, and public involvement. Our website can be found at thepersaudcatalog.org. We currently publish an electronic newsletter called The Persaud Catalog, maintain a library of paid and free courses on marine biology, and host local conservation and education events in Southern California. Our Instagram accounts, Bluesky Account, and Facebook Account can be respectively found at @thepersaudfoundation, @thepersaudcatalog, @persaudfoundation.bsky.social, and @The Persaud Foundation.

I am also one of the proud hosts of the Marine Enthusiasts, a podcast about marine biology and all things ocean! We currently have 20 published episodes, and are available on Spotify, iHeartRadio, and much, much more. In each episode, Skylar K. and I, explore a different marine biological or oceanic topic, and discuss it among our 2 eccentric hosts. These topics range from sharks to ocean acidification, to coral reefs, to the strangest deep-sea fish you have ever seen. In addition to this, we also conduct various interviews with people across the marine profession, such as marine biologists, scuba divers, underwater photographers, professors, science communicators, and conservationists!

In addition to both of these endeavours, I am an inventor, and currently have 2 patents available on Justia’s website.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
The thing that taught me the most about work was not a person, but rather a concept. The idea of mortality is one of the driving forces behind my productivity. Humans have only been allotted one life, only one, & no more. You have a rather short 80 to 90-year period to do everything. That is by no means enough time to accomplish everything that one wishes to, & the only ways that I have found to remedy this are to live as passionately, & work as much as possible. That is one of the reasons that I work as much, as passionately, & as vigorously as I do.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
I would say the 2 fears that have undoubtedly held me back the most are fear of failure, and fear of being wrong. As a society, we penalize failure as if it is something to be ashamed of, rather than a receipt of showing that you tried. Even though you failed, you still made an attempt, and that is not something to be ashamed of. It is far better to try and fail, than it is to never try, and wonder if you could have succeeded. You cannot teeter on the precipice of possibility, you must make that leap, and occasionally that may mean failure. When it does, do not be ashamed.

As for being wrong, we punish this in the same way we punish failure. Rather than being happy that we made an attempt, many people feel deeply ashamed or embarrassed when they are wrong about information regarding a certain topic or issue. I feel that as humans we need to learn to be gentler to ourselves, and more proud of ourselves for trying.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What truths are so foundational in your life that you rarely articulate them?
One of the largest truths in my life that is so deeply ingrained that I rarely articulate it, is my love of the ocean. Although my passion for the sea may seem obvious, I don’t often have the opportunity to express it in words. I have such an intense passion for the ocean that I have decided to, with the one lifetime I have, dedicate it to the ocean. I am intrigued by all of its creatures, in admiration of its numerous processes that it maintains near flawlessly, and the variety of ecosystems it contains. From the shoreline to the Mariana Trench, you will find that the ocean is crawling with all sorts of fascinating creatures. All manner of fish, mammals, reptiles, and invertebrates can be found in the ocean, and I strongly feel that we should appreciate them more as a society.

Not enough people understand how truly reliant on the ocean we are. There is no place on Earth you are able to go without being impacted by the ocean in some way, shape, or form. We rely on its creatures to sustain ourselves in the fisheries industry, we rely on its beauty to sustain many tourism businesses in the eco-tourism industry, and we rely on the ocean itself to maintain many of our weather processes. No matter how far you may go from the coastline, ultimately, you’ll always arrive back at the feet of the blue giant.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
There are many things that cause doubt in this world, this is not one of them. Without a doubt, and with every fiber of my being, I am confident that I am doing what I was born to do. I am confident that no matter what other road I would have gone down, I would have ultimately ended up back where I stand today. I know that the ocean is where I was destined to be, and that I would not nearly be as happy in any other profession as I would this one. The ocean called to me, and I answered.

If you love something and are passionate about something, chase it unrelentingly and do not allow anyone to tell you what you can, or cannot do. Only you determine your future, and you should not allow anyone else do that besides yourself.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Image 1: Credit to artist and graphic designer Lex Weinberger.

Image 2: Credit to the illustrious Macedonian artist and graphic designer, @minimalist.queen.

Image 3: Credit to the wonderful Canadian artist and graphic designer, @NauticalWaffle.

Image 4: Credit to the wonderful Macedonian artist and graphic designer Arjeta J.

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