In June, Nina Fabrega and Kaley Donovan will be in Honduras, learning how to survive in a tropical rain forest.

Fabrega and Donovan, both juniors at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, will participate in Operation Wallacea, a United Kingdom-based organization that runs biological and conservation research sites in 11 countries.

‘I’m excited for the whole experience,’ said Fabrega, an environmental studies major with a concentration in biological applications. ‘I’m looking forward to meeting people and professionals that are doing what I want to do someday.’

Operation Wallacea is a network of scientists, nongovernmental organizations, professors and students who research biodiversity and conservation at sites around the globe, as well as work with the local people to help conserve their natural resources. Research sites include Indonesia, Honduras, Egypt, South Africa, Mozambique, Cuba, Peru, Madagascar, Guyana and Mexico, according to the Operation Wallacea website.

ESF is a good school to work with because of the students in the wildlife and conservation programs who want to gain fieldwork experience, said Sara Carlson, manager of the U.S. office at Operation Wallacea.

The research group in Honduras has already discovered 30 new vertebrate species and found four that were thought to be extinct, Carlson said. The program is entirely funded by tuition from volunteers, especially college students, Carlson said.

Fabrega and Donovan first heard about the opportunity in ESF professor Tom Horton’s ecology class. After going to an information meeting, they both decided to go to the Honduras expedition because the travel costs were cheaper.

They began fundraising in October and held a fundraising event at Tully’s Good Times restaurant on Thursday, where patrons could use coupons to take a percentage off the bill and donate it.

The two have set a goal to raise $4,000 for the four weeks they spend traveling and researching, Donovan said. They still have a bit to go, she said, but have plenty of ideas up their sleeves, including a ‘safe, sponsored party.’ They also plan to host 50/50 raffles and bake sales at campus events, such as those held for Earth Day.

In Honduras, participants will study biodiversity and deforestation rates around a coral reef zone, and they will also be exposed to a rare ecosystem called a cloud rainforest. Their first week there will be dedicated to ‘jungle training,’ Fabrega said.

‘We’ll be learning how to study in a rainforest, how to be able to sleep in a tent in the forest, basically survival,’ she said.

In the next two weeks, the girls will travel in a mobile group, interview local farmers and community members to see how deforestation affects them and discuss how to preserve their resources and use them wisely.

Horton, the ESF professor, runs the DNA lab at Operation Wallacea and trains volunteers in molecular techniques, such as DNA extraction. For students, participating in Operation Wallacea is an important opportunity.

‘These students and I get to participate in something that has some pretty serious meaning, that is, protecting biodiversity while helping the human element,’ Horton said. ‘I’d say that mission is a good one.’

mmamisan@syr.edu

 

 

 

 

 

Published on February 20, 2011 at 12:00 pm