Major: Environmental Science
Home School: Wheaton College
OTS Program: African Ecology and Conservation
Spring 2024
Emelia Pettit
“This is one of very few programs so dedicated to showing students a variety of environments. You get to travel, meet new people all while developing research skills.“
1. Wheaton offers a tropical field biology course that allows students to dip their toes into the world of ecological research abroad. We stayed at La Selva. The food and accommodations were quite nice and I felt comfortable with the program.
2. My professor was a big proponent of OTS because it has a more rigorous curriculum than some of the other abroad field schools Wheaton has partnerships with.
4. I wanted to strengthen my research skills since I go to a small liberal arts college, where very few research opportunities exist.
5. Location. South Africa is pretty LGBT-friendly and as a gender-non-conforming person I felt same traveling to SA
I really enjoyed seeing the massive baobab in hamakuya. We measured it against our collective wingspan, took guesses on the age, and spent a considerable amount of time exploring it. I found the whole thing to be powerful and really exciting. Before this trip I thought alll succulents were small fleshing things.
This is one of very few programs so dedicated to showing students a variety of environments. You get to travel, meet new people all while developing research skills. It helps students to establish postundergraduate plans, and exposes students to variety of topics.
I studied the interactions between A. swazicum and its predators. I found it so exciting to present this topic to representatives of scientific services, and feel like I have tangibly given back to this maling place.
Coral reefs form the second most diverse ecosystem on the planet. They host around 25% of marine life and provide sustenance to indigenous communities such as Melinesians, Gunadules and Torres Straight Islanders. Unfortunately, scientists project that around 90% of corals will have undergone bleaching by 2055.
I believe that Astrangia poculata, Southern New England’s only coral, may hold the key to preserving tropical corals. This species is known to continue thriving after bleaching events. I hope to get my PhD assessing the impact of temperature on population dynamics and genetics in bottom-up scenarios.
