Emily Nocito, PhD is a New Jersey native, received her BS from Stony Brook University in Coastal Sciences (2016), where she predominately studied ecotoxicology, as well as constructed wetlands. She then went on and received her MS from the University of Maine in Marine Policy (2018), where she studied marine protected areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction. She received her PhD in Environmental Studies from University of Colorado Boulder in 2023, where she studied the ongoing High Seas Treaty negotiations out of the United Nations Headquarters in NYC. She was the recipient of the Millennium Oceans Prize (2015) and founder of 10 by 2020, a youth-led NGO focused on ocean education and literacy. She is a JFEW Global Scholars alumna, and has worked with the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth. Over her summers, she develops curriculum and teaches for CU Science Discovery.