Miss Christopher examines a Lionfish in order to compile data on the feeding habits of the species.

Putting in her lot as a rotaractor with the maintenance of the HLSCC Marine Centre Mangrove Boardwalk, which she played a role in helping to construct.

Courageously handling an endangered native Boa.

Hard at work in her office at CFD. Photo: Reuben Stoby/VINO.

Miss Christopher speaking to students on a field trip.

Miss Christopher is the Assistant Fisheries Officer in charge of the Data and Research Division at the Conservation and Fisheries Department. It is a huge and important responsibility yet Abbi finds the time to successfully engage in various projects and activities that serves to make her beloved Virgin Islands a safer and better place.

Abbi said her job title includes managing and monitoring the fisheries information and data of the department’s clientele and the product to make sure they are sustainable. This is to ensure that there is always a market and production values for the country. She also keeps track of the various fisheries data obligations of the country and is the primary person for international fisheries contacts in that regard.

Ms. Christopher explained that “when the country becomes a part of any international fisheries agreements or obligations, I would be the person that would keep track of the requirements to ensure that we are compliant or figure out what we need to do to become compliant. This may mean putting systems, laws or protocols in place as necessary to achieve that and as well to be on the lookout for various projects that might benefit the fisheries sector of the country.”

Cooperation with external agencies is sometimes an essential part of the job and the Lionfish Programme is a prime example of that. Abbi is actually one of the two task coordinators of the Lion Fish Programme, which is a special project of the CFD and, which she has a passion to see succeed. “It is not a problem that could be slept on. Invasive species of any kind have been so very damaging on the communities that they impact. With the Lionfish, it is an aggressive predator. I mean you are talking economical, environmental, and probably even a social change. It demands attention and input from everyone. It has been a fortunate situation so far that the direct stakeholders have been cooperating and trying to assist as much as possible and so there is a lot that has been done but there is still a lot more to be done.”

She noted that awareness and eradication are two methods in the Lion Fish Programme. Her ability as a scientist would require that whenever one is caught she studies its stomach contents to get an idea of where the fishes might be feeding and consider the impact on the habitat.

Though in the fisheries unit, the Department is one built on inter-sector support, so a day intended for data analysis may very well end in the field.

Abbi sure is tough and daring. How many persons do you know would handle a reptile with no sign of fear? Miss Abbi E. Christopher is one of those rare persons and she has the picture to prove it too. But the point is Abbi possess that enviable courage, something which could be attributed to her unending desire to venture out into charted and unchartered waters.

She is a Past President of the Rotaract Club of Tortola, has 20 years in the Girl Guide movement (where she has served as a Guider), a former representative to the caucus as a  Commonwealth Youth Ambassador for the Territory and is currently the Coordinator for the Kids and the Sea (KATS) Basic Sea Skills programme. She is also an avid church-goer, who enjoys singing although she admitted her elder sister is better, has played steel pan within the church and with Shooting Stars Steel Orchestra and is also the only youth deliverer on the roster of the religious radio programme Quiet Heart Devotions.

But don’t get Abbi wrong. She is definitely not the type that goes according to script. “I take it as a compliment when someone says I am different. For me that is not an insult. A lot of people, young and old tend to have an idea as to where they want to go and then they navigate life in order to go where they want to get. I don’t do that,” she said with a cheeky smile,“ I more so operate from a standpoint that, yes we have one life but we can live it a hundred different ways during that time period. I have no fear of failing. I was not told that things were not possible.”

And Abbi is proof that she is an achiever. Growing up in different communities in Tortola, she fondly recalls climbing mango trees in Baugher’s Bay. Abbi received her education at the Alexandrina Maduro Primary School before going on to the BVI High School now known as the Elmore Stoutt High School and then the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College to complete her A-levels. She then secured her bachelor’s degree at Columbus State University in Georgia and is certain about pursuing her masters in the near future.

And just as how she was given the opportunity to be exposed and to achieve, Abbi hopes to someday make it possible for someone to get that opportunity via a scholarship that she would sponsor. But it wouldn’t for sure be your regular intellect who would be on the receiving end of the scholarship.

“Working with children in different groups you see the brilliance of some of them who just don’t fit into any of the boxes that someone else has already established and they tend not to have that little step they need to get onto that other level. We have lots of success in various sectors. But when you have someone who dreams of being an acclaimed poet or an inventor because we don’t yet have that trend it is not held as something that is overwhelmingly desirable. I want the day when you get that first big shiny success story.

That is what my scholarship would be for, not for the every days but more so for that story or that person who is not yet established.”

The May-born Abbi, who was born on the 21^st, recognizes her birth month rather than day as she believes she is that special, also engages in writing poems and stories and hopes to one day publish a book that she hopes would be an inspirational one. Some of her poems have already been published. But among the many things that is on the list for the multi-talented Virgin Islander is to one day engage in a culturally unifying project.

“For the coming years, my focuses will lie in a unification of VIslanders. I love my Virgin Island people but right now I find that there is a lot of focus on the negatives that young people are doing and the good that is being done is not being highlighted. There are a lot of groups and programmes that are being restarted. There are positive things that are coming out but for whatever little reasons, they keep not quite making it to the level that they need to.

I personally know who I am. I have a strong identity of self and it has allowed me a lot of opportunities and allowed me the liberty to simply reject a lot of negative things that came at me and there are a lot of young people that need that. The celebration of self is not something that we often have here and so I am working on something that allows young people to celebrate their individuality yet at the same time hopefully have it recognized as a commonality.”

Abbi sure is a serious thinker that you might find it a bit hard to believe if you saw her with her nephews locked in video game battles or having fun on the beach with family or sailing with friends.

“Friends and family are core. I have many leisure activities with family. Those things are essential because if you are not working for something else outside of yourself or if all you are doing it for is the dollar you don’t work as hard, you don’t work as long and you definitely don’t work as happy.”

And speaking of family, Abbi said she is grateful to her mom for the encouragement and support given to her. “My mom works from the standpoint that if you want it take it or rather go get it. She would say things like if you ask for something the worst thing that could happen is that they would say no but guess what people have heard no before and survived so why not ask. So I say if you want to do something do it what is the worst thing that could happen. You might not get it the way you want it to be but at least you still get the experience of attempting to do it. You still learn something in that process.”

But how does Abbi maintain a balance with all the activities that she engages in and is yet able to be a young professional at CFD. “I think that the same way that persons seem to build a routine around work they could put that level of organization and routine into every other sector of their lives and really if all you are is work, especially if you are in a high stress job or have ambitions to do great things you need people. It’s wonderful to be self sufficient but it’s even better to be supported.”

Enjoying the task at hand Abbi believes makes it much easier but prioritising wisely also helps. “Know what jobs would be strenuous and what time of the day your energy would be high so as to complete the task effectively. If you are busy fighting with yourself about whether or not you should do something, or how you should do something and if you want to do it you waste a lot of time and energy. Whatever you are doing at the end of the day, you are the one doing it and you are the one that needs to be most proud of it.”

And if all of this information about one of the VI’s proudest citizens doesn’t budge you, her catching smile surely will. Abbi E. Christopher's constant smile is the evidence that no matter how occupied she is or even how serious the job at hand may be she is enjoying it.

“Any day that you didn’t smile or laugh was a waste of the day. Something just wasn’t right.”