The highlight of my second “Swarthmore summer” was the research trip to Ecuador that I took with a few fellow members of the Swarthmore Conservation Biology lab. We started our trip doing field work at Tiputini Biodiversity Station, located deep in the Amazon rainforest in one of the most biodiverse places on Earth. Then we spent the rest of our time in Quito, mainly doing lab work and educational outreach.
PHOTOS BY BRIAN KATONA
Two-thirds of Swarthmore students do college-funded research at some point in their college career. This research can come in many different forms. Students can do research on campus, travel abroad to do fieldwork-oriented research with a Swarthmore professor, or receive a stipend to do research at another institution. Swarthmore also provides funding for students taking advantage of many other non-research experiences, such as unpaid internships and social justice work.
During the spring semester, students fill out a summer funding application; if approved, they will receive an approximately $6,000 stipend to help cover housing and other living expenses. In addition to funds procured through the general application, there are several other sources of funding that can help cover additional costs specific to the summer experience. I was very appreciative that the biology field fund covered several costs related to our work that weren’t applicable to most other Swatties doing summer research: our required vaccinations, transportation to the middle of the Amazon, and all of our field gear.
PHOTOS BY BRIAN KATONA
My conservation biology trip was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. As I sit here at Swarthmore reflecting on the experience, I am wishing that I could just snap my fingers and teleport back to the rainforest. While I’m happy that I can fall asleep in my dorm room without fear of termites crawling into my bed, I miss everything else about the field station: the sunlight filtering (and rain pouring) through the lush green canopy, the chirping of frogs, the tricky hikes that required balancing on log bridges and slipping down muddy slopes, the glow of bioluminescent mushrooms, the nighttime sparkle of the Milky Way, the once-in-a-lifetime animal sightings, and definitely the amazing people!
The trip as a whole was an immersive experience into so many aspects of being a conservation biologist. We were researchers in a remote field station, technicians in a molecular lab, caretakers in a frog rehabilitation center, collection workers in a herpetology museum, and educators at a vivarium. It was the people we met that made this trip even more special. In addition to our Swarthmore professor, we learned so much from the professionals who we were working beside. They were some of the most passionate people I’ve ever met; it was clear that they care so deeply about the organisms they study, the biologists they work with, and the environment. Meeting everyone and seeing the passion they bring to work everyday has made me so much more excited to have a career in biology.
PHOTOS BY BRIAN KATONA