Student Scholars

Conserving Rare Species

Katie Hardash ’27

Wildlife Science

Katie Hardash was inspired to become a rare species conservationist while fishing for golden trout in California. Climate change was pushing the fish out of their historic range. “Their plight got me interested in learning how I can help,” she said. A professor at her local community college steered her to ESF, and she immediately applied.

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Making a Difference

Melia Kanaovicz ’27

Environmental Biology

Thanks to donor support, Melia Kanaovicz, a senior environmental biology major at ESF, spent her summer contributing to a groundbreaking mosquito surveillance program in St. Lawrence County; an effort that’s already making a difference in public health.

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The Ecology of Healing
Olivia Kurtz

Conservation Biology

For Olivia Kurtz, ecology is the study of intimate relationships. A Ph.D. candidate at ESF in conservation biology, she investigates relationships between species, relationships between people, and relationships between people and the land where they live. “We can’t look at ecology with humans outside of it, so restoring the ecosystem means examining our relationships within it,” Kurz said.

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Seeing the Forests and the Trees

Nathaniel Lord ’26

Forest Health

Nathaniel Lord has conducted research at ESF every semester except his first. As a freshman, he ran a transformation experiment with a gene conferring resistance to American chestnut blight. He moved on to beech leaf disease, replicating the disease cycle and exploring associated microbes through in-vivo inoculation techniques.

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Keeping Private Forests Healthy
Jacob Whittaker ’26

Sustainable Resources Management

Fifty-six percent of forest land in the United States is privately owned. Sixty-two percent of those owners are families and individuals, according to a 2008 USDA Forest Service report. ESF senior Jacob Whittaker is preparing for a career in consulting forestry to help them manage their land in a sustainable way. 

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