Nature Conservancy interns count mussels, maintain trails

The Nature Conservancy in Delaware is hosting six interns this summer, giving the high schoolers and college students an opportunity to have an impact on their local environment. 

The unifying goal behind the paid internships is to expose young people to new experiences and open their eyes to career possibilities while building work skills and conservation literacy, according to the conservancy.

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The youngest interns, four rising high school seniors, are participating in the Leaders in Environmental Action for the Future program.

Three come from Conrad Schools of Science in Wilmington: Keeley Duffy, Julia Lee and Jennifer Pizano. One intern, Oni Snead, comes from Walter Biddle Saul Agricultural School in Philadelphia.

They will canvass ash trees in First State National Historical Park, perform trail maintenance at The Nature Conservancy’s McCabe Preserve outside Milton and survey freshwater mussels with the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary in the Brandywine.

“Hosting the LEAF interns in July is definitely a highlight of our summer here at The Nature Conservancy,” said Director of Community Outreach and Partnerships, Maria Dziembowska, in a statement. “We plan for months to ensure the interns get to participate in a wide variety of activities across the state.”

In comparison, Growing Leaders on Behalf of the Environment is a 10-week summer internship for college students and recent graduates. The program offers professional training, networking opportunities, a mentoring program and experiences that bridge the gap between academics and real-world conservation work. 

For example, GLOBE intern Alexa Messick, a University of Delaware student, will also be serving as a Watershed Fellow and will work on the Stream Stewards program, which is a citizen science partnership between The Nature Conservancy in Delaware and First State National Historical Park. 

John Oakes, a recent UD graduate, will be based out of The Nature Conservancy’s office in Milton. He will spend most of his summer working with staff on projects at two public preserves, the Edward H. McCabe Preserve and the Ponders Tract Preserve.

“So far, I have helped with monitoring the different TNC preserves, including areas where a prescribed burn was performed in the spring,” Oakes said in a release about the program. “We tore down and replaced the old sign kiosks at the Ponders Tract and McCabe Preserves, used ArcGIS to map out routes for each site, cleaned up trails and so much more. I learn something new every day." 

After the internship, Oakes said he intends to apply for a job with The Nature Conservancy but is open to a plethora of careers related to the field of conservation.

While it is sometimes difficult to measure the long-term impact of internship programs, the Nature Conservancy noted that over 30 percent of surveyed LEAF alumni go on to pursue environmental careers and over 50 percent volunteer for environmental causes in their communities.

To learn more about the Delaware chapter's conservation initiatives, get updates on the work performed by the summer interns and to find a public preserve, visit www.nature.org/delaware.

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