The Chagos Conservation Trust is delighted to welcome its intern for the
2026-2027 academic year, Elisha Gough, who is on a ‘year out in industry’
between her second and third year of her marine biology degree at
Swansea University. She will work half the week with the Trust, and the
other half in the Marine Conservation Ecology Lab (known at MarCEL), part
of the university’s Bioscience Department.

Elisha is the third intern for CCT, after its internship programme launched in
2024 in partnership with Swansea University. Having an intern for a year
will increase the Trust’s capacity, whilst teaching a trainee marine biologist
the skills needed to run a marine conservation charity – important for
students wanting to work in this sector post-graduation.

Last year’s intern, Jenny Tait, enjoyed her time with the Trust so much she
will continue interning a few hours a week to help with communications and
events after covering the CCT social media platforms when our director
took annual leave this summer.

Our first intern and Youth Ambassador Martina Reina-Canitrot continues to
attend the Overseas Territories Youth Network after graduating in the
summer of 2026 with a First Class Degree in Marine Biology with Honours!

Elisha will get involved in all areas of the Trust’s work over the next year,
from event management to attending meetings, plus assisting with hosting
online talks. We are all excited to welcome Elisha to the CCT team!