Meet the 2019 Conservation Research Interns!

by Miranda Geller

May 2019

IAE 2019 Conservation Research Program Interns Eva, Erica, Cia, Rose and Crew Lead Miranda started on a typical gloomy spring day in Oregon, and have since been settling in and learning about what the season will bring for them. Eva, Cia, and Miranda will be traveling all over Oregon—from the Great Basin where they will monitor Mulford’s milkvetch (Astragalus mulfordiae) to the Rogue Valley where they will see Gentner’s fritillary (Fritillaria gentneri) and Cook’s lomatium (Lomatium cookii), as well as other sites and species here in the Willamette Valley. Erica and Rose will be spending the majority of their time monitoring golden paintbrush reintroduction sites throughout the Willamette Valley, including Finley and Baskett-Slough National Wildlife Refuges.

Crew lead Miranda is a graduate of Oregon State University, where she completed a B.S. in Botany and Plant Pathology. Over the last several years, she has worked on a variety of monitoring and research projects across the West, as well as wildlife consulting and in native plant nurseries. Her primary interests are in landscape ecology, restoration design and materials, and environmental justice. She hopes to continue her education and complete an advanced degree within in these fields. Even when not working or studying, she can usually be found botanizing in some way, whether it be working in her garden, riding her mountain bike, or hiking into subalpine prairie.

Cia graduated from the University of Montana with a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies and a minor in International Development. During her undergraduate years, she focused on sustainable agriculture and food systems, which fostered a love of plants; both domestic and wild. She also spent a month studying Climate Change in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, which piqued her interest in how climate change affects not only the man-made world but especially the natural world. She is excited to gain professional experience in the world of conservation research and hands-on knowledge of conservation efforts in the West. In her free time, she enjoys reading, painting, sketching, getting outside, and most of all; mountain biking! She is ecstatic to explore Oregon and to work with IAE for the summer.

Eva graduated from the University of North Carolina Asheville with a BS in Environmental Studies and Spanish. While completing her degree, she conducted research on the distribution and habitat of rose moss (Rhodobryum ontariense), and studied abroad in Costa Rica and Ecuador. In her free time, Eva loves to hike, do yoga, cook, and garden. She is an aspiring plant nerd, so she is so excited to expand her botanical knowledge and start her career with IAE this summer!

Erica recently graduated from Oregon State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and an emphasis in Marine Sciences. Most of her undergraduate was spent doing marine research and surveying tide pools in Newport, Oregon. This is her first position after graduating and she is excited to gain more experience in conservation biology in a professional setting during her internship at IAE. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, rafting, reading, and painting.

Rose graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.A. in Anthropology and a B.S. in Ecology. While at UGA, she worked in the archaeology lab and in a terrestrial ecosystem ecology lab. She has also volunteered time doing fieldwork in coastal Georgia ecosystems, and participated in writing a grant to build a native plant pollinator garden on her campus. Rose’s undergraduate research project focused on cross cultural studies of cultures throughout Africa, parts of Asia, and the Americas, specifically focusing on cultural groups in Madagascar. Since graduating, Rose has worked at an outdoor retail store and as an environmental educator. Rose loves spending her time outside backpacking and hiking, dabbling in drawing and painting, and listening to and playing music.

We wish this awesome group of folks the best of luck out there, and can’t wait to hear more as the season progresses! Join us on Thursday evening, July 11, 2019, at the Corvallis Arts Center for an IAE Intern Showcase to hear results of their season of research and monitoring Willamette Valley ecosystems. Read more about IAE’s Internship Program here.