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Environmental Studies (Environmental Scientist)

Marios Balis

Marios Balis
  • Postgraduate Studies
  • Mytilene, Greece

About Me

I was a shy and insecure student who truly blossomed during my university years. I graduated from the Department of Environment at the University of the Aegean (1992), and in 2015 I completed a Master’s degree in Geoinformatics.

For many years, I worked as an environmental consultant (environmental impact assessments), as well as a sustainability and entrepreneurship advisor. Since 2017, I have been part of the Laboratory Technical Staff of the Department of Environment at the University of the Aegean.

I deeply love my work — Environmental Studies as a field that prepares new scientists to combine their careers with the greatest challenge of our century: Sustainable Development as a means of mitigating and adapting to planetary changes that already affect our daily lives.

Why I Chose My Career

When I finished high school, the Department of Environment had just been established. What drew me to it was precisely the fact that it was something new. I already had a natural interest in nature, and I was fascinated by the idea that we could create useful materials from waste.

Most university departments at the time felt “overcrowded” — at least in my mind. Even though environmental issues were far less prominent back then, I decided to take the risk and choose something outside the stereotypes of the era. I have never regretted it.

Environmental Studies turned out to be far more than spring flowers and recycling bins. It is an interdisciplinary approach to the complexity of environmental challenges.

Why I Became a Volunteer at R.E.A.L Science

Although the environment is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century, Environmental Studies remain largely invisible to students and to society. Without proper information, many students choose traditional or “popular” fields that may not suit them.

Through R.E.A.L Science, I want to help highlight interdisciplinary studies as a pathway that offers career flexibility and promotes the idea that education should be a lived experience — not just technical training.