Marianne Cufone grew up playing in the ocean off the coast of New York and New Jersey.

“I would immediately go running towards the ocean,” Marianne remembers, “and my parents would have to catch me because I was so young that I couldn’t swim.”

However, when Marianne was a teenager, the coast was polluted with medical waste. Walking along the beach one day, she saw a beached jellyfish pierced by a dirty syringe.

“I thought ‘Gee, someone should do something about that,’ and then later I thought ‘Maybe I could do something about that.’”

Marianne began to develop the skills needed to become an environmental lawyer by joining her high school Model United Nations and debate club.  After a stint traveling the world, crewing on boats and teaching SCUBA diving, she earned degrees in marine science and law at the University of Miami. She later went on to open her own consulting firm, Environment Matters, where she works on ocean, fisheries, pollution, and coastal management issues.

Marianne’s job has not always been simple or pleasant. She has received many threats and had her car tires slashed. Once, someone threw a dead fish at her.

“It’s not the glamorous job that people think, and it’s certainly not a popularity contest,” Marianne said. “It’s very hard to make everyone happy, so you just have to do what you feel is right…maybe it sounds corny, but I want my kids to be able to swim in the ocean and go fishing.”

Want to learn more? Check out Environment Matters.

Editors note: Food & Water Watch is pleased to announce that in January 2008, Marianne Cufone joined our team as the new Fish Program Director.