College is over...now what?
Since graduating from Dickinson in May of 2014, I have been on quite the adventure. I know that I would like to start graduate school within the next two years, but when I left Dickinson I did not know what I wanted to study. Environmental Science is a broad field, and I loved so many of my courses at Dickinson that I did not yet know what I wanted to go to graduate school for. Just a short few months later, and I am already feeling like I am figuring it out. I have a more focused idea of what I want to study and I am excited to start looking at schools and jobs that will help me to explore that further. .
Dumping oysters on a sanctuary reef in the Choptank River. As part of the Marylanders Grow Oysters progam, people with docks can care for cages filled with oyster spat until the oysters are large enough to be put on a reef!
Chesapeake Conservation Corps
Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy
September 2014-present
I am currently living and working in Easton, Maryland as a Conservation Corps Volunteer (CCC). There are about 30 CCC volunteers this year, and we have paired up with host organizations throughout Maryland with jobs ranging from environmental education to restoration to research. We spend most of our time working at our respective organizations, but one of the really nice features of the CCC is that we get together six or so times throughout our year to attend professional develop days. These range from how to write grant to how to organize volunteers. These events range from one-day events to over night camping trips! It has been a great way for me to get to know my fellow CCCers!
My work at the Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy (MRC), has been extremely rewarding. I have had the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects which has allowed me to figure what kind of work I enjoy and what I don't. I help with weekly water quality monitoring, teach education classes in high schools and elementary schools, assit with oyster restoration project, and help write grants. I help plan events and oversee volunteers. I really get to do it all which is what I love about the organization. I feel really privaledged to work with such an incredible group of motivated people. I am learning so much from all of them and I am grateful that they allow me to really participate in everything I find interesting.
Confrences and Professional Developments attended thus far for CCC:
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Chesapeake Watershed Forum: My poster on woodchip bioreactors won the People's Choice award for best poster
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I am also on the planning committee for a Young Professionals track for next years Watershed Forum
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PD: How to run effective meetings and give good presentations
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PD: Resume building and cover letter writing
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Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE) confrence
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All Hands on Deck grant review committee
Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge
Salt Marsh Intern
June-August 2014
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I am so glad that I had the privilege to work under salt marsh ecologist, Susan Adamowicz, at Rachel Carson NWR. Rachel Carson NWR is located along the coast in Wells, Maine. It was established in the late 60s to protect the saltmarshes of southern Maine. I chose this internship because I knew that salt marshes were an ecosystem that particularly fascinated me. Throughout this summer working with a leading salt marsh ecologist, my passion for salt marshes grew. It was after this summer that I really felt like I could say that wanted to study coastal ecosystems.
As a salt marsh intern, I helped collect data for the Salt Marsh Integrity (SMI) project. I really enjoyed working on many different elements of the project. I learned to read Suface Elevation Tables (SETs). I learned how to choose locations for nekton sampling, ground truth those locations, and then sample them. By the end of the summer, all of the salt marsh interns were teaching other interns and volunteers how to deploy ditch nets and throw traps and collect the nekton data. I learned how to do two different types of vegetation surveys. Each one of these elements gives different insight into the condition of the salt marsh and over time will hopefully show how the salt marsh is reacting to climate change and sea level rise.
In addition to doing field work and data mangement for the salt marsh office of the refuge, I also developed an interactive interpretive trail. The refuge has an interpretive trail with eleven stopping points along a mile trail. As a mini-project, I took those eleven points and put QR codes at each point which linked to a website I designed. The website took the information from the printed interpretive map and included pictures and links for more information so that visitors could really explore the elements of the trail that they were most interested in. The refugue manager liked it so much that he has ordered permentant metal signs with the QR codes to be put up at each stop on the trail.