About
Futurismo

Miranda is one of our guides who works on the sea. Most of the time she can be found leading whale and dolphin watching tours aboard the catamaran. She is orginally from Holland, but studied Marine Science in New Zealand, where she completed her Master in Marine Science, focused on sperm whales in Kaikoura. After working in whale watching in Kaikoura she moved to the Azores to follow her dream of seeing whales, in particular sperm whales, in another part of the word. During her first season working with Futurismo she fell in love with the Azorean marine life, especially after discovering the diversity of species that is encountered here. Miranda is dedicated to learning more about the cetaceans of the Azores and she is also passionate about nature photography and birds.

Languages: English, Dutch, Portuguese

Laura comes from Galiza in Spain. Since she first came to the Azores in 2008 to finish her degree in Marine Biology she has maintained a passion and connection to the islands. She began working for Futurismo in 2008, but returned to Spain in 2009 to continue her studies in Oceanography and Biodiversity. Since 2013, Laura is working on her Doctorate using data collected by Futurismo’s biologists during whale and dolphin watching tours. Her current studies are focused on the ecology of whales and dolphins around São Miguel Island. 

Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, English

Marina was born in the Basque country where she has always adored the sea and all that exists there. She moved to Cadiz in the south of Spain to continue her studies in Marine Sciences. She enjoys travelling, so the change to the Azores was an easy one for her. In the Azores she finished her studies, then decided to stay here for the adventure and nature that the Azores has to offer.  Marina integrates herself in various projects and work related to marine life, including marine turtles which are one of her favourite types of marine animals. She is currently working on her Masters in Biodiversity and Technology. Although she works as a guide on the sea she also makes the most of enjoying her free time by hiking, climbing and and involving herself in nautical sports.

Languages: Spanish, French, Portuguese, English

Andreia came from Terceira Island to São Miguel Island in 2012 to embark on a new adventure and take a course in Marine Biology. She started working for Futurismo as part of the Estagiar U programme, which is an intern programme that spans the summer months. In 2015 she completed her degree and joined the Futurismo team. Andreia is currently completing her Masters in Biodiversity and Technology. She adores animals, the sea and nature. She is one of the company’s marine biologists who adores swimming with dolphins. 

Languages: Portuguese, English

Carine Zimmermann from Switzerland is considered a migratory species, usually to be found in the proximity of whales and dolphins. Since her early childhood, she is fascinated by these sea creatures. Her passion thrived her to fulfill her vocation. Starting 12 years ago as a whale watching guide she is since then contributing to research and mainly raising awareness about cetaceans and their conservation. With a background in environmental consulting and – communication as well as in photography, she is a professional seafarer who gathered quite a bit of experience in practice after learning the theory. She is always happy to answer your questions about anything related to sea life.

Languages: German, English, Spanish, French and Portuguese.

Cristina was born in southern Spain where she did a degree in Environmental Sciences.
She worked as an environmental educator and in various LIFE projects on wildlife conservation.
She started sailing at Mediterranean Sea where she became familiar with research and sighting of cetaceans.
Already in the Azores, after a scholarship at the University she started working in Futurismo where she continues as a guide for whale watching and swimming with dolphins.

Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, English

Rafael is from São Miguel Island, and since the age of 9 he knew that his area was the sea. He started working in diving in 2016, after finishing his degree in Marine Biology. In 2016 he began working for Futurismo, and he is currently also working on his Masters in Biodiversity, focused on Risso’s dolphins. What Rafael enjoys most about his work is seeing people’s reactions when they are seeing the amazing species of the Azores for the first time. He also has a goal of becoming a skipper for Futurismo in the Future.

Languages: Portuguese and English.

Mário was born and bred in São Miguel and is one of the earliest members of the team. He began working for Futurismo in 2000 as a skipper and he is now the main skipper of our catamaran “Cetus”. But being a skipper isn’t his only job, as he also enjoys working on aspects related to the mechanics of our fleet of boats. When he goes to the sea he is is always vigilant and often spots even the smallest blow of a whale. He is very interested in the sea and he likes to get together with the biologists to talk about the marine life and the adventures he has experienced (there are many). Since he was young Mário has loved the sea and he never missed the opportunity to sail our waters.

Languages: Portuguese, English, Spanish, French

Fernando was born in Angola and has been living in Portugal since a young age. His connection with the sea began in the 90s, when he was a diver in the Portuguese navy. After leaving the navy he was a professional diver for about 20 years and in 2001 he went to Brasil to train in professional saturation diving. In 2003 Fernando moved to the Azores to be a dive instructor. Since 2010 he has been working as a whale and dolphin watching skipper and he joined Futurismo’s team in 2017. Besides his passion for the sea he also enjoys photographing wildlife.

Languages: Portuguese, English, Spanish

Languages: Portuguese, English

Ana has a degree in modern and applied languages and has been working in the company for several years. She is responsible for reservations and the functioning of our main shop and back office. Ana enjoys working as part of a team and is always in a good mood. Her passion is travelling and when possible she likes to explore other parts of the world.

Languages: Portuguese, English

Dina has a degree in social work and has much experience in customer service. She enjoys what she does and her main objectives are to focus on our visitors’ interests and giving them all the information they need to get to know the island. Dina receives each client with professionalism and a good mood. She also has great interest in travelling and nature./p>

Languages: Portuguese, English

Natalia’s training and experience is in the area of hospitality. During the past 2 years she has been working in Futurismo’s office and she stands out for her good work in accounting and administrative management. Natalia has an interest in travelling.

Languages:Portuguese, English

Milton is one of of our lookouts who is origninally from São Miguel. He started out as a fisherman on tuna boats, where he dedicated two hard years. He helped in constructing two tuna fishing boats and from there his interest in being a lookout began. After 8 years of being a lookout for tuna fishing boats he decided to look for “bigger animals”. So, Milton joined Futurismo’s team in 2016 as a lookout. He adores being in the outdoors, taking his binoculars and seeing what the ocean has to offer every day.

Languages: Portuguese, English

Roberto is the lookout that has been with Futurismo for the longest. Thanks to him we get to see so many animals during our whale and dolphin watching and swimming with dolphins tours. He began working for Futurismo in 2007, and since then he is one of the key members of the company. Roberto has years of experience and well trained eyes for finding and understanding whales and dolphins up to 45 km off the coast. In his free time he enjoys fishing.

Languages: Portuguese, English

Mariana is from Terceira Island, but she came to São Miguel to do a degree in Marine Biology. In 2009, while she was studying, she decided to occupy her summer holiday by working in whale and dolphin watching, which is where her passion for the sea was born. She did her Masters in Marine Sciences in Lisbon, but returned to São Miguel to finish her thesis on oceanic fronts and spatial distribution of the big baleen whales that pass through the Azores. After finishing her Masters she joined the team of Futurismo in 2015. Mariana is one of our main marine biologists who specialises in swimming with dolphins. She loves the sea and everything related to it. During her free time she enjoys doing hiking trails with her dogs, participating in sports and going to the beach.

Languages: Portuguese and English.