Nicolás is an early career marine social scientist from Puerto Rico. He has studied the cooperative strategies of commercial small-scale fishers in Puerto Rico using an adaptive self-governance perspective. His current interests include leveraging fisher's social capital to foster collective action and adaptation in coastal communities facing diverse impacts. Since 2017 he has been part of the Community Advisory Board for the Co-management of the Luis Peña Canal Reserve, where he has contributed to the education and local stewardship of this no-take marine protected area. Nicolás believes in the use of science to guide participatory and transparent decisions to conserve ecological integrity, promote island sustainability and prioritize the well-being of vulnerable coastal populations in the insular Caribbean. Currently, he works developing an action plan for food security in the island municipality of Culebra, PR, which includes the facilitating the formal organization and capacity building of our commercial fishing sector.