Lillina is completing her MSc in biogeochemistry with SOCCO. Her research focuses on assessing uncertainties resulting from the use of various mathematical models used to derive rates of primary production by means of fast repetition rate fluorometry (FRRf), a chlorophyll fluorescence technique, and determining the dominant ecological drivers of variability in key photophysiological parameters. She is supervised by Dr Sandy Thomalla and Dr Thomas Ryan-Keogh. She obtained a Bachelor of Science Honours in Biological Sciences at the University of Cape Town and joined SOCCO in 2021 as an MSc student intern.