{"id":24809,"date":"2018-05-14T10:09:19","date_gmt":"2018-05-14T14:09:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=24809"},"modified":"2024-07-02T16:55:15","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T16:55:15","slug":"carolina-to-cristobal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=24809","title":{"rendered":"Carolina to Crist\u00f3bal"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Haley
Haley Moser collects data as the sun sets over San Cristobal Island. (photo courtesy of Haley Moser)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After visiting the Gal\u00e1pagos Islands for a research project over winter break, senior Haley Moser hopes to pursue a career in community-centered research after graduating from Carolina this May.<\/em><\/p>\n

Water sloshes rhythmically as I make my way across a farm on San Crist\u00f3bal Island in the Gal\u00e1pagos. As I begin my trek up a steep hill, the weight of the five-gallon water bag I\u2019m carrying begins to wear on me. This is my second trip grabbing water today, and I\u2019m tired.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u00a1Tomas m\u00e1s que las vacas!\u201d shouts a nearby farmer. It translates to, \u201cYou drink more than the cows!\u201d<\/p>\n

Although I wasn\u2019t really in the mood for jokes, I couldn\u2019t help but smile and laugh along with him. Geovanny Sarigu, the farm\u2019s manager, works under environmental stressors like high temperatures and water shortages regularly. And he knows these things will only get worse over time. But every time I see him, he wears a big smile that infects everyone around him.<\/p>\n

Galap\u00e1gos farmers take such pride in their jobs as producers \u2014 and I really enjoyed working alongside them to collect data for a research project led by Ang\u00e9lica G\u00f3mez, a PhD student in the UNC Department of Geography. Over winter break, Ang\u00e9lica and I traveled to the islands to study how land cover changes from human impacts like development, tree removal, and soil cultivation are altering the water cycle.<\/p>\n

During the trip, Ang\u00e9lica took vegetation and soil measurements and launched a few sensors to collect and store air pressure and water temperature data. This involved hiking through dense and remote forests, scaling rocks, and avoiding these thick, invasive blackberry brambles.<\/p>\n

Ang\u00e9lica would joke about how she wouldn\u2019t have to work out that night because of all the hiking and said being lost \u2014 which happened a few times \u2014 was a great way to get to know our new home. I, on the other hand, was ready to call my mom the first day we got lost in the Galap\u00e1gos jungle. But my feelings of unease disappeared soon enough. Within a week we were taking soil measurements and planning sensor locations while dancing along transect lines to Ang\u00e9lica\u2019s favorite musicians from Colombia, her home country.<\/p>\n

\"Moser
Moser (left) and G\u00f3mez pose in front of the Gal\u00e1pagos Science Center, a joint effort between UNC and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador. (photo courtesy of Haley Moser)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Meaningful partnerships<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before arriving in the Gal\u00e1pagos, Ang\u00e9lica and I worked in the same lab for about a year and became friends. I was grateful that she trusted me to be a reliable assistant for the trip, especially since I was so fascinated by the hydrological aspects of her work \u2014 something my own research focuses on. I hoped to aid my theoretical and modelled research with real-life rivers-and-streams hydrological studies.<\/p>\n

The incredible landscapes and biodiversity of the islands intrigued Ang\u00e9lica. But, mostly, she hoped to discover how human activities have altered this once-pristine ecosystem \u2014 a question still largely unanswered. In our efforts to understand the changes, the people we met and interacted with made me realize I had picked a meaningful project that would not only impact me, personally, but would directly enhance the lives of others.<\/p>\n

After taking tons of measurements, we placed our sensors on a few farms around San Crist\u00f3bal Island, which gave us the opportunity to interact with farm owners and workers. Not only did they allow us to work on their properties, but they were also genuinely interested in the work we were doing, and wanted to know the details and results.<\/p>\n

I felt motivated to do my job to the best of my abilities because of the trust they placed in us to use their land \u2014 and work around their cows, which would often lick our tape measurers and relocate our transects. The more accurate our processes were, the more use these farmers would get from the data, which will compare temperature and pressure to periods of high growth on the farms, offering information on the best times to grow specific plants and for how long.<\/p>\n

Ang\u00e9lica, on the other hand, hopes to use this data to create a model to evaluate how water storage is impacted by different configurations of the land cover. Particularly, she\u2019s interested in the differences between systems dense with native vegetation and those that have been overtaken by invasive species \u2014 a signifier of human activity and introduction.<\/p>\n

A personal journey<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the course of this trip, I learned that some things cannot be taught in a classroom. Research, especially in remote areas on the sides of tropical volcanoes, never goes the way you think it will. Because of this, I was forced to slow down and take my time over and over again.<\/p>\n

In order to be successful, you have to know what you want to do, what to pack to do it \u2013 and remember to pack everything \u2013 complete all the tasks you wanted to get done that day, and then be sure to bring everything you took back home with you. I was always anxious to get outside and get to work, but I never would have been able to correctly if Ang\u00e9lica hadn\u2019t made me constantly slow down and take risks.<\/p>\n

\"Haley
(photo courtesy of Haley Moser)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n

Doing the more \u201cboring\u201d work up front before you do the actual observations or measurements makes all the difference in the world because it leads to fewer mistakes once you\u2019re 10 miles away from the lab without a cell phone signal. It\u2019s not a glamorous lesson but definitely an important one.<\/p>\n

Before going to the Gal\u00e1pagos, I wanted to study the environment through computer modelling and virtual simulations. I\u2019m more of a physical geographer than a human geographer, which means my research is focused more on computer work and less on community. Ang\u00e9lica and this project showed me that you really can have it all \u2014 quantitative work that allows you to engage with the people who live in and around your study area. Now, whatever job I end up with absolutely must involve being outside and interacting with people.<\/p>\n

I believe I arrived back to the states a more patient and empathetic person \u2014 one who can speak a little bit more Spanish, is willing to try more foods, and most importantly, is more considerate of others.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Haley Moser is a senior double-majoring in environmental sciences and geography within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences.<\/em><\/p>\n

Ang\u00e9lica G\u00f3mez is a PhD student in the Department of Geography within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences.<\/em><\/p>\n

Special thanks to the UNC Department of Geography, the Institute for the Environment, and the Faculty for the Future \u2014 an organization that funds PhD women in STEM from developing countries to do their research \u2014 for funding this trip.<\/em><\/p>\n

Story by Haley Moser for Endeavors magazine<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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After visiting the Gal\u00e1pagos Islands for a research project over winter break, senior Haley Moser hopes to pursue a career in community-centered research after graduating from Carolina this 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