From water guns to science clubs: A field-to-classroom internship with the USGS

As an M.En. candidate in Miami University's Institute for the Environment and Sustainability (IES) program, I worked as an intern at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Illinois Water Science Center in Urbana, Illinois. What started as outreach activities later grew to encompass GIS editing and fieldwork. Accordingly, my primary duties involved data communication, data processing, and data collection. I was able to participate in projects ranging from invasive species management research to water resource demonstrations at schools. All projects served to fulfill the agency's mission to collect objective data about the Nation's natural resources. This multi-faceted internship allowed me to explore the many sides of environmental science in a professional context. In working with scientists of different disciplines, I grew to appreciate the interdisciplinary approach to problem solving so central to IES.