He believes that by returning, he can help address some of the island’s most pressing challenges. Aside from the ongoing issue of brain drain, which weakens the island’s workforce capacity, Cruz also pointed to increasing waste generation, with plastics and other post-consumer products often ending up in the landfill due to limited recycling infrastructure—contributing to environmental strain and missed opportunities for circular economy innovation.

The University of Guam Center for Island Sustainability and Sea Grant, in partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF) INCLUDES SEAS Islands Alliance, introduced Cruz during a special signing ceremony, following the Guam Green Growth (G3) Steering Committee meeting at the Governor’s Complex in Adelup.

Established in 2023, the NSF Navigating Home program is designed to reduce brain drain by encouraging the return of skilled STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals to their home island of Guam, Puerto Rico, or U.S. Virgin Islands. Program participants must have degrees in marine, environmental, or sustainability sciences and may have left their home territories for education or work.

Cruz joined the program and was placed as a fellow with the G3 Circular Economy Makerspace and Innovation Hub, where he had previously worked from 2023 to 2024.

Before returning to Guam, Cruz spent time in California, in 2024, where he took robotics classes at the Universal Technical Institute and later gained CNC machining skills at the NTMA Machinist School.

He said that CNC machining skills could help foster small-scale manufacturing capabilities on island. “We can help them get the skill set here,” Cruz said, referring to residents interested in launching product-based businesses.

CNC, or computer numerical control, automates the manufacturing process using pre-programmed software to carry out precise tasks—turning materials such as metals, plastics, and wood into finished products. The G3 Makerspace currently houses a set of CNC machines, the only ones on the island.

During the ceremony, Cruz showcased several products he created at the G3 Makerspace recycling plastic and developing it into a flat-pack stool prototype and student desk. The desk’s plastic top, made from a discarded COVID-19 pandemic sneeze guard, can also be used as a dry-erase board. The materials were sourced from Cruz’s former school, Maria A. Ulloa Elementary in Dededo.

Born and raised on Guam, Cruz noted that his time off-island helped him recognize the importance of returning. “Of course, we needed to bring all the knowledge home so that we could fix it ourselves,” he said. “I guess you could say with my certificate and everything I learned, it was too easy to go to the States, get another job that could possibly provide a better life for me and my family. But if we don’t fix it ourselves, it will never be fixed. It is the way I see it.”

“Through past National Science Foundation grants, we created over 250 student research opportunities that never existed before in Guam,” said Austin Shelton, Ph.D., director of the UOG Center for Island Sustainability and Sea Grant. “After getting top-notch training at UOG, some of these students are now completing advanced degrees off-island, so we created the Navigating Home to bring them back to Guam on one-way tickets to enter our workforce.”

Acting UOG President Sharleen Santos-Bamba added, “The University of Guam is always very fortunate to have talented individuals work with us and to foster relationships and collaborations across the island and the region. It’s opportunities like this that allow us to plug up the brain drain. Those of us around the table made the decision to stay home and plug up that drain. And now it’s our chance to bring our talent back to Guam.”

NSF Navigating Home is currently recruiting short-term fellows to return to Guam for a three-month term.  The fellowship will include round-trip airfare to Guam, a stipend of up to $7,000, and a chance to develop your skills and explore career fields with a host agency within UOG or GovGuam. Interested applicants can email Axel Defngin at defngina@triton.uog.edu for more information.