Inspirational Women in STEM and Tech: Dr Catherine Macdonald Of The University of Miami On The 5 Leadership Lessons She Learned From Her Experience

As a part of our series about “Lessons From Inspirational Women in STEM and Tech”, we had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Catherine Macdonald.

Dr. Catherine Macdonald is an interdisciplinary environmental scientist and Research Assistant Professor at the Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science at the University of Miami. She is the Track Coordinator for the Marine Conservation track of the Masters of Professional Science Program, and teaches courses in Marine Conservation Biology, Shark Ecology and Conservation, and marine field research skills. Through the University of Miami’s Shark Research and Conservation Program and their Females In Natural Sciences (F.I.N.S.) program, middle school and high school female students from underserved communities have hands-on marine science experiences. Some of these experiences have been captured via Canon technology made possible by the University of Miami’s relationship with Canon Solutions America.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

After graduating from college in 2007, I received a Watson Fellowship, which supported a year-long international research project studying interactions between sharks and shoreline communities. Now, I’m an interdisciplinary conservation scientist, mostly working on marine systems, with a focus on shark biology, ecology, fisheries, and conservation. Working at the University of Miami, I am the director of the Shark Research and Conservation Program (SRC), which focuses on shark research and public science engagement and education. I study coastal shark populations in South Florida, looking at everything from physiology to habitat use to interactions with fishers. In addition to studying sharks and tropical marine ecosystems, my research interests include wildlife tourism, how humans relate to the environment, and human-wildlife conflict.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began at your company?

We normally have a team of 6–7 from SRC, including a photographer (with Canon cameras provided as part of our relationship with Canon Solutions America, allowing us to capture great photos from our expeditions). Most of our field research takes place in collaboration with high schools in the Miami area. We usually have about 15–20 students on every research day. What makes it so interesting is how involved the students are; they help us measure the sharks and take biological samples. They assist in keeping the sharks wet, take essential measurements, and help with the tagging. They also take small-tissue samples from the fin; they do so much to contribute.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Small mistakes with sharks are not necessarily meaningful and big mistakes with sharks aren’t necessarily comical. Anyone who works on a boat hasn’t escaped from wiping out walking across the wet deck, but luckily there hasn’t been a funny meaningful mistake when it comes to what we do.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Working with these incredible animals on a daily basis is so rewarding. Sharks, evolutionarily, are such an interesting group of animals and most people don’t understand how impressive their lineage is; we’re talking about 400–450 million years that they’ve been on the planet. For context, that’s older than trees; older than the North Star, so let’s just say a very long time. So, working to understand how they function and how that is changing on a modern, human-dominated planet, is very important. The information we collect helps us understand sharks better. In addition, getting to work with such an engaged and committed group of students makes it easy to get excited and motivated to work in conservation. It provides me with optimism that things can turn around and it makes me motivated to help contribute to making the changes we want to see.

Ok super. Thank you for all that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview. Are you currently satisfied with the status quo regarding women in STEM? What specific changes do you think are needed to change the status quo?

It’s important to have more practical experiences for young women interested in STEM fields. It is very common if you ask students at higher levels, particularly in biology and ecology, what drove them to choose the subjects they wanted to study, and for many of them, it was their experiences with field work. It’s about seeing the world in a new way. But as much as field work is a draw, it can also be a factor that makes students say, ‘this isn’t for me,’ which is just as important to learn. My field has made a lot of strides as far as being inclusive to women and having more space for them which is great for current female students.

Unfortunately, I can’t ensure that they won’t encounter barriers (in regards to pursuing STEM careers) that some male counterparts might not, but I want to play a role in helping them understand that those barriers as being about other people’s limitations, and not about them and their potential.

I think by continuing to embrace experiential learning we open female students up to a multitude of benefits. It enables us to challenge preconceived notions, broaden other perspectives and attain a profound comprehension of various subjects. This approach is instrumental in personal and professional growth, allowing the field to continuously evolve and expand our knowledge.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by women in STEM or Tech that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts? What would you suggest to address this?

An important way to assist girls interested in STEM fields is simply by letting them know there’s a space for them in science. It’s important to give them their chance to shine. There are girls who may not connect with me personally, but watching them get to connect with the right student at the graduate or undergraduate level, is really rewarding. A focus should be on working to increase safe and welcoming field research opportunities, which is what our program tries to do in giving that hands-on experience to groups that have been historically excluded from that in the past, especially in STEM. The biggest challenges are showing female students, especially those of color and those who may identify as LGBTQIA+, that they have a place in these fields. By connecting with mentors and teachers, they can hopefully see a future in areas that might not have seemed to be a viable career path previously. Those issues of representation have not been a factor that some male counterparts might have encountered, so it is imperative to dispel the misconceptions that STEM careers are the domain of a select few groups.

What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a woman in STEM or Tech? Can you explain what you mean?

It is often through personal experience that we can truly comprehend and dispel preconceptions. From a leadership standpoint, learning by doing is an invaluable approach. As my graduate students are actively engaged in the process, we are fostering a profound understanding and growth not only within myself but also among the young students who are just beginning their journey.

In this field, we encounter common questions about sharks and their supposed aggression. It is only by witnessing it firsthand that truly becomes evident. Observing sharks from a boat allows us to see that they are more inclined to avoid human contact and simply wish to continue on their own path undisturbed. By immersing ourselves in this experience, we can debunk the myth and gain a genuine understanding of the sharks’ behavior.

What are your “5 Leadership Lessons I Learned From My Experience as a Woman in STEM or Tech” and why?

1. It took me a long time to realize that how people treat you is about them, and not you. It’s very common among students to feel that, for example, if someone is not welcoming to them, that they did something wrong, or they don’t belong. I tell my students that if someone is a jerk to you, it probably doesn’t have anything to do with you. When we’re out on the boat, you won’t see me screaming at anybody. Everybody is there to learn. If you’re getting screamed at, that’s about who that person is.

2. Not every opportunity is actually a good opportunity. Especially in marine science, people come in with such a passion for the underlying subject matter that they’ll take whatever foot in the door they can get. I try to make sure that my students leave with the understanding that if the opportunity doesn’t align with what you want to do (or how you want to do it), it may not be a real meaningful opportunity, even if it is in your field. You’d be better off doing good work with good people.

3. Humility is a really powerful leadership tool. I think recognizing that I don’t know everything and approaching it from that perspective creates space for other people to contribute. Everyone is asking questions together, rather than people feeling they have to ‘fake it until they make it.’ We grow better learning together than we do by trying to pretend we already know everything.

4. You can’t do good work in a bad way is a thing I learned. I’ve worked with people who think the ends justify the means, but my own experience is that if you feel you can’t defend the means, it won’t make the ends right.

5. Understanding that leadership is an action, not a position. You don’t become a leader because someone appoints you to a leadership position. You lead and often the position will follow. Leading doesn’t mean getting the most credit or being the most out-front. It means recognizing what needs to be done to support the success, not only of your own work, but your team’s work, and willing to grind it out until it happens.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I could write a book on the number of people who have helped me along the way and to whom I’m grateful, but I’d say especially my father, who never treated me differently than my brothers — he always believed in all of us and assumed we were equally capable. As a young adult I remember being absolutely shocked some people might think I was “less than” in science because I was a woman, and feeling determined to show they were wrong about what women scientists had to offer. That’s due in large part to how he raised us. I’m also so deeply grateful for the team of staff and students at the Shark Research and Conservation Program, because nearly all of my accomplishments, from running a safe and fun day of field work to conducting meaningful research, are team accomplishments. When the work we do is great, it’s because I’m lucky enough to work with great people.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

When I was doing field work in the Caribbean, I saw a quote painted on the side of a building that really resonated with me: “Leadership is an action, not a position.” If you wait to be invited to lead, you may be waiting a long time. For me, that meant recognizing my own leadership style, which includes doing my best to serve others to help them learn, grow, and reach their goals, as a meaningful kind of leadership, and understanding that leading isn’t about (or isn’t just about) being the person who gives orders or makes final decisions. It’s about being a person who demonstrates an organization’s values through their own actions and supports the success of others. It reframed things for me, providing a reminder that anyone can lead, from any position on an organizational flow chart.

We are very blessed that very prominent leaders read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)

I have been really fortunate to have some incredible women scientists take the time to share their knowledge and perspectives with me. There are so many woman leaders in business who are breaking barriers who I would love to have a chance to learn from, including “first” women leaders of large organizations like Mary Barra and Karen Lynch and leaders who have worked to make their organizations more diverse and inclusive, like Thasunda Brown Duckett. And of course, as the director of a non-profit research program, I always want to have lunch with business leaders who have an interest in philanthropy and shark conservation.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.