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What Kind Of World Do I Want To Live In?
Summary
Researchers document student participation in marine conservation service-learning activities including microplastics research, mangrove planting, and oyster reef census work in the Indian River Lagoon, examining how community engagement shapes perspectives on the kind of world students wish to inhabit.
Marine Conservation and Restoration is one of the most influential courses through community engagement and class discussion on conservation and restoration strategies. I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Walters’ CEE (Coastal & Estuarine Ecology) Lab to plant mangroves and census oysters for restoration projects and to contribute to microplastics research based out of the Indian River Lagoon. Through this course, I gained experience that can be utilized in active research and active restoration through hands-on work both in the field and in the laboratory which will strengthen my academic CV and personal skill development. Engagement with the local community through volunteering events such as International Coastal Cleanup and the Restore Our Shores oyster restoration projects also helped me develop a sense of community across a greater range from Central Florida to Coastal and South Florida. This course also distilled a greater sense of hope for the ongoing biodiversity and ecological crisis that the world faces and allowed me to make a more immediate, material impact on the ecosystems we rely on.
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