How does biology fit into your overall interest in environmental science, your coursework and in your research?
Biology and environmental science are interconnected in many ways, so having basic understandings of biology helps a lot when investigating issues relating to the environment. Biology focuses on the study of living organisms and it encompasses a wide range of fields. You can study plants, animals, how different organisms interact, how different processes occur within organisms and within individual cells, and so much more. Ultimately, all living beings will have some sort of effect on the environment, whether directly or indirectly. So when I study the environment, it is really helpful to have a sense of who and what is affecting it. Also, studying living organisms themselves can tell us more about the environment itself, like if it is highly biodiverse or not.
Because there is a lot of overlap between the two fields, a lot of the courses I take for my major also have to do with biology. In the Resetarits lab, many of us are involved in environmental science or environmental biology, so I don’t really feel like an outsider.
What type of research did you work on?
My research involved looking at the trematode prevalence in the eastern mud snail in protected embayments and open water sites. The mud snail is the intermediate host of the trematode, which means the parasite's life cycle involves multiple different intermediate hosts (birds, fish, even turtles) before it actually infects the snail. If infections are more prevalent in the snails, it means that all these other species are also in that area.
So we actually love to see infected snails because it's an indicator that there is biodiversity in that ecosystem and that it is doing well. Looking into one organism can show us the bigger picture of an environment.
Over the summer, we wanted to see how infection rates varied across the boroughs in the city. During SRI, our lab did a mix of lab and fieldwork. We visited all 5 boroughs to collect snails. Some locations were: piers along the Hudson River, beaches, and creeks. We tried to collect about 100 randomly picked snails per location to get a better sense of what the environment was like. We kept these snails in a fish tank in the lab. On days we were not out in the field, we were in the lab dissecting the snails. We would crack the snail shells open, and under the microscope, we looked at their gonad area for any trematodes.
Fun Fact: We collected and dissected 1000+ snails over the summer!
What made you interested in environmental science?
Ever since I was a little kid, I dreamed of myself as a scientist. I originally wanted to be an astronaut. Over time, I started drawing myself in a lab coat and got more interested in environmental science. I'm one of the first people in my family to go to college and I am probably the first going into STEM.
Climate change/global warming is part of the reason why I chose this as a major. We are currently seeing the effects of it, such as disastrous natural hazards, rise in temperatures, melting ice, etc, and will continue to do so. Living in NYC, sometimes I take for granted how lucky we are that the effects of climate change aren’t as catastrophic as what other places around the world are experiencing.
Visiting my parent’s hometown has also made me aware of environmental issues, specifically those that directly affect me and my family. The rise in temperatures is very noticeable there. My family grows crops (such as corn and sorghum) but recently due to the lack of rain and high temperatures, the crops have been affected. They are not growing properly and need more pesticides to combat plagues.
However, environmental science is more than just observing climate change. Throughout high school, I was part of the Green Team. We managed recycling at our school and made presentations. These presentations touched on a variety of topics, many that are still relevant today, such as water pollution/conservation, fast fashion, and environmental racism.
One event in particular that we did in Green Team that I enjoyed the most was during the week of Earth Day. We created presentations about various environmental scientists who were women. Growing up, it was common to see many male figures in STEM positions, but this activity made me realize that pursuing environmental science (or STEM in general) as a woman of color was possible.
So picking environmental science as my major allows me to learn more about the environment beyond climate change. I have been able to learn about weather processes, volcanos, cool rocks, and even how to use software and language programs (R, Python, QGIS) for environmental science!
Tell us more about yourself?
Although I do not practice it anymore, I enjoyed bowling in high school. I was a part of a bowling team at my school and it was a lot of fun. Recently, I’ve been enjoying reading during my commute to campus. I have been reading Spanish books to improve my reading comprehension in Spanish.
When I’m not busy with schoolwork, I enjoy playing online games or watching shows. One of my favorite places on campus is the Commuter Lounge because it allows me to escape for a bit from the busy-ness of campus. I also enjoy sitting outside on the tables of Milbank Hall, to get some fresh air while doing work.
