What are you up to now?

Bennet Leon
Summer Research Program '05

Mentors: Audrey Barker-Plotkin
Project: Evolution of pit and mound microtopography 15 years after a simulated hurricane (abstract)
Hometown: Sudbury, MA
College and major: Bates College, class of 2007, Geology

What you miss most about the Summer Research program:
Being around enthusiastic students with similar interests and spending all day in the hemlock forest or simulated hurricane experiment.

What you miss least about the program:
Having Lyme disease--check for ticks!

What about the program has stuck with you:
A better understanding of our dynamic landscape and renewable forest resource.

Have you stayed in touch with other Summer students?
Yes.

Did your Summer Research experience support or change your school/career plans?
My experience at HF added a unique element to my geology major at Bates and gave me a different perspective on my work with the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife after college. When at Harvard Forest, I did not expect that I would end up studying forest ecology and applied forestry as a graduate student.

What are you up to now?
I am a Masters of Forestry Candidate at the University of Maine School of Forest Resources. I am looking forward to a career as a consulting forester, and possibly seeking a policy role some day concerning the forest resources of New England, the nation, and the world.

What are you up to now?

Dunbar Carpenter
Summer Research Program '07 and '09

Mentors: Kristina Stinson, David Foster, Jonathan Thompson
Project: Landscape-scale Ecological Drivers of Alliaria Petiolata Invasion in Western Massachusetts  (2007); Biomass Energy and a Changing Forest Landscape: Modeling the Effects of Intensified Harvesting of Massachusetts' Forests for Biomass Energy Production (2009)

Hometown: Portland, OR
College and major: Harvard College, class of 2008, Organismic and Evolutionary Biology

What you miss most about the Summer program:
Being at Harvard Forest surrounded by great peers and scientists. Working closely with mentors. The exposure to a wide range of ecological research.

What you miss least about the program:
Petersham, while charming, can be a bit isolating.

What about the Summer program has stuck with you:
A lot - learning about the scientific process, the tedious and hard work necessary for scientific learning and discovery, many of this skills involved in field work and analyzing data, and scientific collaborations.

Have you stayed in touch with other Summer Program students?
Yes.

Did your Summer Research Program experience support or change your school/career plans?
My first summer in the program opened my eyes to the world of environmental science and ecological research. The following year I got a bit academically burnt out, but when I came back for another summer I had a great experience and it confirmed to me that I wanted to continue in ecology.

What are you up to now?
This summer I'm working as a field assistant at the Teakettle Ecosystem Experiment in the Sierras in California. In fall 2011 I'm starting a masters in forest ecology at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Eventually I would like to be doing applied research and education in forest landscape ecology.

What are you up to now?

Cassandra Rivas

REU '08

Mentor: Audrey Barker Plotkin

Project: Forest type transition directly influences the seed bank

Hometown: Edinburgh, TX

College and major: University of Texas-Pan American, class of 2008, Biology/Music

 

What you miss most about the REU program:

I miss the east coast forests, the fire tower (great for meditation & an easy get-away), afternoon thunderstorms, and all the wonderful people I met that summer.

What you miss least about the REU program:

The humidity and mosquitoes.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:

The field experience (botany/forestry) I gained that summer . It definitely got my foot in the door for other field jobs with agencies such as, the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey, and most recently, the U.S. Forest Service.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?

Yes, through Facebook and recently, I met up a few REU buddies in the west coast for some more outdoor adventures!

Did your REU experience support or change your school/career plans?

Most definitely. Prior to my REU experience I was doing research in a lab and for the most part, hated it. After that summer, I realized I wanted to work outside as much as possible, but not necessarily doing research. That summer, I also decided to take time off before grad school - and couldn't be happier with that decision.

What are you up to now?

Since my summer at the Harvard Forest and graduating college, I have held many biological science tech positions with various government agencies focusing on conservation & restoration efforts throughout the Sierra Nevada (CA). Recently, I applied to a few master's programs in Natural Resource management, as well as the Field Naturalist program at UVM. This fall (2011) I will be moving to the east coast for my top choice - UVM!

What are you up to now?

Jennifer Popham
REU '09

Mentor: Ed Faison
Project: Seedling & Sapling Composition Influences Browse Intensity of Ungulates in Massachusetts

Hometown: Gardner, MA
College and major: University of Massachusetts-Amherst, class of 2010, Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation

What you miss most about the REU program:
Being surrounded by people who are passionate about the environment and ecology.

What you miss least about the REU program:
Rainy days in the field when it rained so hard, for so long, that even the Write-In-The-Rain paper gave up.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
The memories of spending every day out in the Quabbin Reservior Watershed. It was such a peaceful place to be five days a week.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?
Yes! There are a group of us who chat often and update each other on our lives. We hope to get together for a reunion someday.

Did your REU experience support or change your school/career plans?
My REU experience actually made me realize that I do not want to do research for a career. It was too much of a long and tedious process for me and I'm glad that I realized that during the program and not after I went to grad school to do research.

What are you up to now?
I graduated from UMass in May 2010. I want to be a National Park Ranger, so I've been applying for positions all over the country.

Harvard Forest Get-Together at the ESA Annual Meeting

This year, Harvard Forest organized a social event at the Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America in Pittsburgh, PA. The goals of the social were to bring together past and current folks who have worked at the Forest to catch up with each other and to provide an occasion for any undergraduates attending the ESA Meeting to come learn about opportunities at the Forest.

On August 3, 17 people attended the social at Olive or Twist, a martini bar close to the Convention Center in Pittsburgh. 7 past REU students, 5 past researchers, 4 current researchers, and 1 potential future REU student were able to connect with each other, chat about current projects at the Forest, and learn about how Harvard Forest has influenced their lives and career paths. It was great to learn that several REU alumni have attended or are now enrolled in graduate ecology programs around the country!

Thanks to everyone who attended this event – we’ll hope to see more Harvard Forest alumni in the future!



[Morgan Tingley (REU '00 & '01), Sarah Butler (current researcher and mentor for REU program), and Jen Johnson (past research assistant) chatted about current projects at the Forest]



[Marit Wilkerson and Jens Stevens, both REU Alumni from '05, caught up with each other while discussing the benefits of the Harvard Forest program with Ava Hoffman, an undergraduate at the University of Virginia.]



[Naomi Clark and Matt Lau, both REU alumni from '03, were excited to re-connect at this event]

What are you up to now?

Brian Warshay
REU '05
Mentor: Jacque Mohan
Project: Physiological Girdling of Forest Trees: Developments of a New Method to Understand Soil Respiration

Hometown: Eastchester, NY

College and major: Cornell University, Natural Resources & Environmental Engineering Technology (double major)

What you miss most about the REU program:The people and friends met there and the good times we had after our work days were complete.

What you miss least about the REU program:
The mosquitoes and humidity.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
My appreciation for the dedication and efforts that ecologists devote to their research and the sciences that support it, despite the long hours, backwards politics, and modest pay.


Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?

Yes. I still catch up with Jens Stevens fairly regularly and have recently been reacquainted with Katherine Lenoir.

Did your REU experience support or change your school/career plans?
Definitely. I actually learned that I did not want to pursue pure research as a career. I admire those who do but realized that I didn't have the intrinsic motivation for the meticulous field work and effort necessary to do research full time. It was an invaluable experience. I've never enjoyed something that I didn't want to do so much.

What are you up to now?
After working for three years as an environmental consultant I quit my job and am now attending the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, UAE studying for a masters degree in Engineering Systems and Management with a focus on renewable energy, sustainability, and biofuel life cycle assessments. I anticipate graduating in May 2011 and getting a job in sustainability consulting or another related field.

(Brian maintains a blog about his life in Abu Dhabi. Check it out!)

What are you up to now?

Alison Grantham
REU '08

Mentor: Steve Wofsy
Project: Aboveground Woody Detrital Biomass Decreases and Respiration Increases in the 5 Years Following Selective Harvest

Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
College and Major: Harvard College, Biological Sciences / Environmental Studies, '08

What you miss most about the REU program:
The setting and atmosphere was so nice for focusing on science and making great friends. I loved going for evening runs in the woods and taking weekend hikes and trips with other REUs.

What you miss least about the REU program:
The mosquitoes.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
The project I worked on has guided my subsequent career moves, so I guess C and N dynamics and climate implications stuck.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?
Yup! I'm engaged to fellow HF REU alum, Alex Ireland, and have stayed good friends with Megan Woltz and kept in touch with a few others.

What you're up to now:
I'm currently the Research Manager at the Rodale Institute, an organic agriculture nonprofit and exploring options for graduate school.

Read a great interview published about Alison in summer 2010 by the Huffington Post.