Her interest lies particularly in the coastal zones of small island states.  Her related education has been fairly broad, as her BSc focused on physical and chemical oceanography, her Masters was more ecological, and she is currently studying for a PhD in resource economics at the Plymouth Marine Lab.

After short stints in New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and a windowless lab in North Wales, Tara spent five years running marine research, education and training projects on Rodrigues island, Mauritius, firstly for the Royal Geographical Society and then for an independent NGO, which she founded together with other members of the Rodrigues field team.  She also worked as a professional fundraiser for five years, securing grants and donations for conservation and education projects.

Tara has a firm belief in the value of environmental education, and the education resources she designed for Rodrigues won the $100,000 AGFUND prize in 2006.  On returning to the UK, Tara founded the Marine Education Trust, which, as well as continuing to develop marine environmental education materials for young people, seeks to encourage dialogue and capacity building as the foundations of resource management strategies.  To that end, she has organised two conferences to discuss the social and economic issues related to the development of Marine Protected Areas in the Western Indian Ocean and the Chagos Archipelago.