Meet the Lab’s New Student Researchers this Fall
With the start of a new school year, our team has grown with the addition of student researchers joining us from UMass Boston.
Julia Mintz joined us as a Graduate Researcher and recently started her PhD in Environmental Sciences at UMass Boston’s School for the Environment. She is working under the guidance of Dr. Katherine Dafforn and her research interests center on coastal resilience, nature-based approaches to climate adaptation, and the relationships among coastal ecosystems, communities, and decision-making.
Julia was drawn to the Stone Living Lab for its transdisciplinary, applied approach to coastal resilience, and the opportunity to connect ecological research with community priorities, planning, and policy. Through her work with the Lab, she hopes to deepen her understanding of local coastal ecosystems and nature-based approaches to resilience, while exploring how ecological research and monitoring can integrate with community knowledge to inform more resilient, responsive coastal planning.
Nicole Castañeda has also joined Lab as a Graduate Researcher and is a master’s student in UMass Boston’s School for the Environment, working under the advisement of Dr. Katie Dafforn. She is interested in how sea stars shape the coastal ecology of Boston Harbor through their role as keystone species. Nicole returns to the Stone Living Lab after joining us a couple years ago as a summer education intern. During her internship, she gained a deep appreciation for the city of Boston and the work that the Lab and its partnership does to improve the Harbor’s health and longevity. In her search for graduate programs, Nicole said “I remembered the Lab’s partnership with UMass Boston and jumped at the opportunity to get involved again.” She hopes to gain a better understanding of the development and implementation of nature-based approaches and use that knowledge to better conduct her own research and yield more information to better support Boston Harbor.
We’re also joined by undergraduate researchers at UMass Boston working on exciting new Stone Living Lab projects.
Destiny Ruiz Sanchez is a B.S. Biology student at UMass Boston and was introduced to the Lab through the Cathleen Stone Island Outward Bound School where she was previously a Green Ambassador. Through a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Award, Destiny has been working with Dr. Jarrett Byrnes and Daniel Lopez to monitor crab activity on the Living Seawalls at Condor Street Urban Wild. Her research focuses on how Living Seawalls designs influence crustacean abundance and behavior in urban coastal environments.
Being part of the Green Ambassador program helped Destiny realize how much she enjoys working outside, being near the water, and learning about coastal ecosystems which led to her pursue marine research. Destiny hopes to keep building on her research skills, learn more about coastal ecology and restoration, and gain experience that will help her figure out where to take her interests in marine science in the future.
Reo Peters has joined the Lab as an Undergraduate Researcher and is majoring in Environmental Sciences at UMass Boston. This semester, he is working under Dr. Yang Yang on the SLL Pilot Project to develop a smart monitoring system that will help record and document maintenance concerns such as blocked inlets, sediment buildup, unhealthy vegetation, litter, standing water, and erosion. Reo is interested in exploring the implementation and performance of nature-based solutions like green stormwater infrastructure (GSI), starting here in Boston. “I’ve wondered how to create a more harmonious relationship between human activity and the environment—especially in urban areas where space and biodiversity are heavily constrained,” said Reo on what brought him to the Stone Living Lab. During his time here, he hopes to develop a more complete understanding of what happens to green infrastructure after it’s built and connect with the stakeholders involved.
We’re so excited to welcome so many new student researchers to the Lab—stay tuned for updates on their projects!