Oysters

I'm published! It only took 4 years after I originally wrote and submitted two articles on native Olympia oysters for me to make the big time in the Journal of Shellfish Research. Hehe.

But seriously, it's pretty cool. I spent almost 2 years on the project, which included historical research on oyster management as well as a field project on restoration techniques. I checked out books from the Washington State Library in Tumwater that no one had borrowed for almost 20 years. I trudged through mud in my hip waders, and nearly had to live there when I became stuck and the tide was rising around me. I even braved the tideflats in the middle of the night (when low tides occur in the winter time) to collect shells for examination back in the lab.

In the end, I decided that I enjoyed teaching science more than doing it myself. But, I never could have figured that out without doing years worth of undergraduate research - and support work for other people's research - on Mt. St. Helens recovery ecology (scanning slides), microbial ecology of deep sea hydrothermal vents (real lab work with vials and microscopes - I even presented at the Geological Society of America!), geoduck/eelgrass interactions (more mud and lots of measuring), and of course my native oyster projects.

So what does this have to do with sustainability? Two things:

1) I found my passion - part of my journey toward personal sustainability. I had to try out ecology to learn that I would rather make science accessible to the public - and I think I'm pretty good at it. I just didn't have the patience for lab work, and I wanted to work more actively with people. If I got to the point where I was teaching, I think I'd like that part of academia.

2) My oyster work is an example of the science behind sustainability. So often we recognize a problem (i.e. oyster populations are dwindling), but it's hard to understand why and how to solve the problem. It's an exciting moment, as in many arenas - climate science, green energy, agriculture, etc. - we're looking for and finding new options that are leading towards solutions. It's incredible to think, but my work could inform people doing on the ground restoration. Believe it or not, people do read this rather obscure journal!

And I'm just proud! :)