Field
Location (during time of takeover)
School/Institution
| Undergrad | De La Salle University Communication Arts |
|---|---|
| Masters | University of California - San Diego Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation |
| Teaching | De La Salle University Academic Service Faculty |
Featured on October 19, 2025
Let’s dive deep with Pinoy Scientist Denise Alcantara Garcia, a freelance writer and editor, and Academic Service Faculty at the Br. Alfred Shields FSC Ocean Research Center at De La Salle University.
Denise graduated Honorable Mention from De La Salle University in 2012, completing her Bachelor of Arts, Communication Arts. She spent a few years at Hinge Inquirer Publication, first as an Editorial Assistant then as a Managing Editor. She moved to the Br. Alfred Shields FSC Ocean Research Center in 2017 as a science research specialist specializing in coral reef research and citizen science efforts. She also began freelance writing and editing. She then moved to the Haribon Foundation as a Communications Consultant, and the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute as a University Research Associate for a year. Denise was awarded the Fulbright Scholarship 2022-2023 for the Fulbright Foreign Student Program. She took her Master of Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at the University of California San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography in the USA. Towards the end of the program, she also served as a Policy Research Intern at the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation and a Policy Research Intern at Ocean Conservancy.
After completing her Master’s, Denise returned to the Philippines as a Post-masteral Fellow at Br. Alfred Shields FSC Ocean Research Center where she is now an Academic Service Faculty. She was a Project Communications and Policy Specialist for the ABS-CBN Foundation last year. Denise has also continued her freelance work, having contributed to VICE, Philippine Daily Inquirer, and the Philippine Star, among others.
Some fun facts about Denise:
- She’s a reef researcher by day for DLSU-Shore and a pickleball enthusiast by night (and on weekends) thanks to her husband
- She used to volunteer for Clean Water missions with Waves for Water Philippines, where she distributed portable water filters
- She was a former managing editor of print lifestyle magazines namely Northern Living, Southern Living, and Cebu Living and its digital home, @nolisoliph
