So, "coffee-fueled conservation" you're probably wondering?
Yes! I absolutely adore coffee, and I'm not going to deny it has boosted my GPA. It's currently fueling the energy to write this blog post at the end of a long, but exciting, day. I've had a Blogger account for a while, but I was too worked up over whether or not anyone would ever spend a minute reading it...but then I realized that I don't care, and I want to be a part of the millennial blogging generation, dammit.
Now back to "coffee fueled conservation." I study biology at the University of South Dakota specializing in conservation and biodiversity. I have a deep passion for freshwater and marine biology, and in the future, I want to mesh the two together to further understand the magnitude of how each affects the other. But my love of conservation doesn't stop there.
I advocate for the conservation of wolves, specifically the Mexican wolf, or "lobo." I'm gaining interest in ornithology and birding. I advocate for vegetarianism and veganism as well as the zero waste lifestyle (which is a life goal of mine). Most of all, I love educating others. I'm good friends with the cutest elderly lady from my church, and she tells me often that she loves my Facebook posts on sustainability and conservation--and they say Facebook is a waste of time, ha!
But in all seriousness, I want to educate as many people as possible, and I think it is so, so, so important to make science available to everyone and understandable by everyone. I don't want to be seen as some white-coat clad academic (no offense to those who earn their white coats). I want to be seen as someone who lives in her chest waders, gets her hands dirty, can explain without elitist jargon, and can inspire others to get involved. I want to make science accessible for those who want to help but don't necessarily want a Master's in conservation because science should be a group effort between citizens and scientists.
I also thought this blog would be a great way to record my last few semesters in college as a biology student who entered college not knowing a single scientist and had to figure everything out myself with the help of some VERY patient professors.
So, I guess that's the broad objective of this blog: to help citizens understand and get involved in conservation and help current biology students navigate the alien world of undergraduate biology.
I hope you join me!
DFTBA
(Don't forget to be awesome)
