Thomas Morales is a second-year Environmental Health student at San Diego State University.
Thomas received his Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Science in May 2020 from SDSU. During his undergraduate degree, he studied high nectar-producing flowering plants and monitored pollinator abundance at the SDSU Community Garden.
Since Thomas was a child he has always been interested in nature. He would go fishing with his dad on lakes and oceans. He started pursuing Environmental Science with the goal of understanding how the natural world works. As Thomas transitioned into his Masters degree, he focused on what isn’t working in the environment. Thomas has always had a connection with the land, and has always cared about what happens to it for future generations.
Thomas is the recipient of a National Water Research Institute Fellowship for 2021 for his thesis on wastewater. The National Water Research Institute Fellowship is a prestigious award that is given to graduates students that work on water resources and treatment. He is looking at what chemicals are in our wastewater, which chemicals are left over after treatment, and which chemicals are entering the ocean. Thomas looks at the secondary treated wastewater from the San Elijo Water Reclamation Facility, and is performing a non- targeted analysis to determine what chemicals persist, are removed or transformed after being exposed to sunlight. Dr. Hoh, Thomas’s academic advisor, recommended he apply to this prestigious scholarship. Thomas competed against many impressive PhD candidates to receive this award to fund his academic ventures.
