Creating this e-portfolio has allowed me to look back on the work that I submitted in this course and really reflect on my understanding of the material. 

• What you now understand and value about ocean conservation and sustainability.
• I came into this class with little background regarding ocean conservation and sustainability. I did my minimal part using reusable cups and straws. After taking BIOL 420, I understand that sustainability and ocean conservation are such complex and interdisciplinary fields. Each small change has such large scale implications and it explain why changes are so difficult to make while pleasing everyone. I never even considered fisheries to be a huge offender and assumed that they were heavily regulated however, I am now much more aware of what I need to do to be responsible for my consumerism. I also understand that for sustainability initiatives, it is very important to really consider all angles and perspectives. When looking solely from a biology or science standpoint, the solutions are very obvious and clear however when integrating economics or policy, it becomes a lot more difficult to present one answer that pleases everyone so I believe that this course really opened my eyes to the reality of real-world science. 
• What you would like to add to your earlier work, already in the ePortfolio, that demonstrates your growth in understanding and evaluation?
• I believe that my work was adequate for the time that it was completed as I only knew a certain amount of information. If I were to complete the same assignments now,  I think that my presentations and reports could incorporate multiple disciplines. I lack experience with policy and economics so I avoided bringing them up too much because I was unfamiliar with specific concepts and terms however, as we spoke to more experts my understanding grew. 
• What does the portfolio reveal about you as a critical thinker (and ocean advocate)? How do your assignments and reflections paint you as a critical thinker right now?
• I believe that my portfolio reveals that I am hoping to take a more positive view of ocean conservation. I believe that my projects and reports were mostly focused around global solutions instead of seeming hopeless which seems to be a common theme amongst many conservationists. Even my blog which was about fast fashions harmful impact had a positive spin at the end about what can be done to fix it and hopefully this indicates how I try to approach negative situations. I also think that this course has encouraged me to ask more questions and dig a little bit deeper than the surface content. I found myself questioning techniques I learned about in my ASIA 304 course and realized that once I started asking questions, the information seemed much more appealing. I am able to connect with material more and I credit the critical thinking skills gained in BIOL 420. 
• What two skills you learnt during this course do you find most useful, and why. How will these skills help you in university and beyond?
• The first skill I learned in this course was critical on the spot thinking. This is the first course that required me to answer questions on instantly and provide my own unique perspective on global issues. I think that quick-thinking and problem solving are essential skills especially in high-stress jobs. 
• The second skill has been discussed quite a bit throughout this reflection and it is about the integrated approach that was taken in this course. I believe that throughout university, each subject has been so isolated so this course has been a welcome change and helped shape a new way of thinking for me. I believe that this integrated thinking approach is more realistic now that I am entering the real world because most issues incorporate multiple disciplines. 
• Where do you need to improve? Discuss the challenges that you continue to face and the steps you have taken to improve in these areas?
• I believe that being more outgoing in this course could have only made the experience more memorable. I am not very social and have a hard time speaking up in class so asking questions in front of renowned experts was a bit nerve-racking. I believe that as I grew comfortable with my classmates I became slightly more outgoing however, this course encouraged me to ask questions and interact with others in all of my classes which is a huge step for me. 
• The significance of the individual touches you have added to the portfolio.
• I believe that my presentations each have individual touches to make them memorable. Every new class was an opportunity for me to teach my classmates in a fun and engaging way so I tried to make my reports as aesthetically pleasing as I could. I personally find that if a presentation looks good, the presenter took pride in their research and wanted to showcase it.
• Conclude with a commentary about your active engagement in the course. How much time and effort did you put into the course? Does your e-Portfolio reflect that effort? What would you do differently? 
• I actually spent the most time on this course and not due to the material being difficult. I was fascinated by the guest speakers and concepts being explained and it constantly made me want to dig deeper and find out more. I stayed up to date with the lectures however, I am not a very outspoken person so I found it difficult to ask questions in front of the class. This didn't stop me from researching until I felt like my quest for knowledge had been satisfied. I believe that my e-portfolio fairly represents the work I put in however, if I were to improve it I would have kept it updated as I completed the work. I believe my captions could have been slightly more informative and I would be able to add some additional information on the key points I learned.  Additionally, I were to improve it aesthetically I would have used an alternative software. I would have liked my presentations to be available from the e-portfolio instead of making them downloadable.