Name: Emerlyana Kazuma
Village/Island: Peleliu, Palau
Family size: 7
School and area of study: Palau Community College and majoring in Tourism and Hospitality, Hotel Operations.
In my family, I am known as the: quiet yet perky child in the family .
My favorite non-academic activity: dancing, particularly traditional dance.
I'm really good at: socializing, especially with people whom I have never met in my life.
My career path: to be the best I can in all the career fields that I’m interested in
How did you become aware of the Micronesia Challenge Young Champions: I was introduced to the Micronesia Challenge program by Ms. Carol Emaurois, who is currently the Head of the Educational/ PR Department at the Palau International Coral Reef Center.As a Young Champion, what do you hope to achieve: As a Young Champion, I hope to educate the local community about the importance of the marine resources and to work to raise awareness about the importance of conservation areas and the actions that we need to do to assist in the management and conservations of these resources.
How have you noticed your village/island has changed in terms of the environment and sea? Some of the villages in Babeldaob have seen the unusual high tides during the new and the full moon. There are signs of beach erosion in some of the villages that are unusually worrisome. During full moon these days, we hear stories from old mechas in the village who complained about salt water getting into their taro patches now.
By 2020, I hope that: By 2020, I hope that all the hard work we, the two Young Champions of Palau, have paid off. In other words, I hope that by then, we have accomplished all the required goals!