Not every path toward conservation starts in a lab or an NGO. Some begin far from the ocean, in a gray city, with someone who one day decides to change colors. Valentina Pinorini grew up in Adrogué and, since she was little, set herself one goal: to leave the gray behind and chase the blue. Years later, she did exactly that. She became a professional diver, explored oceans around the world, and found something deeper than beauty in the water: purpose. Today, her story blends intention, process, and nature.

‍In one of your texts you wrote: “I wasn’t born near the ocean. I was born in the gray, but I wanted to chase the blue.” When did you first feel that this search went beyond diving that it was a way of living?

‍I’ve always been a daydreamer. Since I was a kid, I imagined a life in the blue. I have this vivid memory of sitting in a classroom, staring at the teacher but dreaming that I was surfing somewhere in a turquoise sea on the other side of the world.

Back in Buenos Aires, I’d get home from school and jump straight into the pool. In the summer, I’d beg to escape to the beach. As soon as I had the chance, I moved to Hawaii with my small savings, where I learned to surf and spent every free moment swimming around coral reefs.

With time I realized those coral reefs I loved so much were dying because of human impact but that there is a solution: you can plant corals. And to plant corals you either have to be a marine biologist or a diver… so, well, my path showed up pretty fast. So yes, I’d say I’ve always chased the blue as a way of life, and that’s what led me to diving and changed my life completely. Today I can proudly call myself a creature of the blue.

‍What does it feel like to go from imagining that life to actually taking the first step? How did your search begin?

‍It’s intense. It’s that mental click when you say, “Either I act now for the life I want, or it’s never going to happen.” My first steps were asking myself what I could give back to the ocean the ocean that gave me so much, and still does. I realized coral is truly the foundation of marine life. Without coral, there’s no marine ecosystem. After understanding that, nothing felt more important than that mission: saving the ocean.

Someone told me that to plant coral I had to be a diver, and I understood that was the first step. Everything else would come in its own time. You have to focus on small, defined steps.And honestly, I took every step terrified. I won’t pretend I didn’t. But I was trusting my intuition, that deep desire, and nothing else. I had no certainty I was going to make it I was changing my whole life around something that wasn’t guaranteed. That blind faith can be your biggest adventure and your biggest source of anxiety. That’s why it’s so important to take care of yourself: meditate, move slowly, keep your steps clear, trust. And when it works, there’s no feeling like it that smile stays for days. It’s not a surprise you made it if you’ve tried every single day. Deep down, you always know it’s going to happen. If you don’t trust yourself, none of this makes sense.

‍When did you realize that your relationship with the ocean could also become a way to protect it? What role does emotion play in that?

‍The ocean has always been a huge source of inspiration for me. All my paintings, drawings, illustrations they were always about the sea. I never made a conscious decision about that, it just came naturally.

When I wanted to show what was happening under the surface the threats, the destruction I realized art was the strongest way to communicate it. “If I can get people to fall in love with the ocean through my art, they’ll naturally want to protect it.” Emotion is everything. Each illustration carries so much passion, and people can feel that when they see it. Art is a direct channel to pure emotion.But on the other hand, emotion can be dangerous in the world of marine conservation. There are more dark days than bright ones. There are days you want to quit because nothing goes right or you feel like everything is against you. But my mission is to go to sleep each day knowing I did something for the ocean. No matter how I feel, quitting is never on the table.

You’ve been in such different waters Thailand, French Polynesia, Argentina and you mention that you started “thinking like the beings of the blue.” What does that mean? How does spending so much time underwater change the way you see the world?

‍Great question. The ocean taught me so much. It taught me calm. It taught me that every living being even the tiniest is full of emotion and awareness. It gave me a much more empathetic view of life on land. After connecting so deeply with underwater species, I started connecting more with the ones above the surface too.

Have you ever seen the peace in the way a shark swims? Or the colors in a fly’s wings? Or the talent and focus of a spider weaving its web?

We choose whether to fear them, kill them, or appreciate them. Diving teaches you to slow down, breathe slowly, observe. It’s a meditation a pure connection with what surrounds you. And bringing that to the surface is one of the most beautiful things.

What did the ocean teach you about time, patience, and how to move forward?

‍Everything. My first dives weren’t that fun, honestly I got bored, I wanted something to happen, some kind of stimulus. Over time I understood it’s the opposite: it’s a place to slow down, control your mind, and be fully present. Diving, even if it doesn’t look like it, is an extreme sport and dangerous. You have to be very aware of yourself and your buddies. And like every extreme sport, the biggest lesson is to stay present and attentive to the now.

‍Where do you feel you are today? What do you imagine for the future?

‍I feel like I’ve achieved way more than I expected by 24, but I also feel like I’m just getting started and that’s the best part. I’ve reached so many dreams, but I keep dreaming higher and higher. I feel like I’ve built a solid path, created amazing human connections with people in the world of marine conservation, and those connections can turn into incredible projects. Being surrounded by people who teach me so much about the ocean leaves me grateful and hungry to learn more every day.

I want to see the corals of the world, visit every ocean, meet every species, contribute to conservation through art or through physical work. Lately I've received job offers from all over the world, and I’m extremely grateful, but I’m still discovering and opening my path. Like I said, this is just beginning, and I want to get to know the world and its people a bit more before choosing one place to settle. But I’m sure art will always be there, and something tells me 2026 is coming with huge opportunities.

‍What do you hope your story sparks in other young people reading this interview?

‍I want everyone to start dreaming really big. I think people stopped dreaming stopped dreaming big and loud. They started choosing dreams that keep them comfortable, easy things, very possible things, but that don’t light their fire.What they don’t see is that the crazier your dream is, the more chances you have of making it happen because nobody else is going after it.

I became a girl who draws, paints murals, dives, and loves marine conservation. If you think about any of those paths, people say, “You’re going to starve.” And yes, I heard that a lot. But by combining all my passions, I created a path that almost no one walks and that opened the doors.

I’d tell them to dream big and go after it. Build your own path it’s going to be unique, and that’s exactly what makes it possible.