I had the opportunity to go to the Antarctic as a volunteer on a field team in 2008. Up to then, I would never have thought of going to Antarctica. The beauty and solitude of the place made it a wonderful place to work, and the truncated nature of the aquatic ecosystems on the Continent make it an amazing place to study microbial ecology and nutrient cycling. It holds beneath its' ice sheet some of the last unexplored environments on Earth, as well as important links to the nutrient cycles in our world's oceans. I am interested in a polar career because I want to contribute to our understanding of these great ecosystems and, consequently, our planet.