CONSERVE Summer Interns 2020

Polina Chizhov

Polina Chizhov is a senior at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry where she majors in environmental science with a concentration in watershed science. Her research interests revolve around water conservation in arid landscapes and understanding how future water shortages will affect our agricultural landscape. As a CONSERVE Summer Intern, she is assisting Dr. Amy Smith Muise and Dr. Jeanne Gleason at New Mexico State University to promote and enhance online educational resources relating to water, microbial contamination, and irrigation including the CONSERVE water sampling and water testing interactive modules. She hopes to gain some insight and perspective on the interdisciplinary nature of a conservation organization and learn how to communicate effectively in research settings.

Katherine Eckart

Katherine Eckart is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, College Park majoring in bioengineering with a minor in sustainability. She is very interested in applying engineering to address environmental problems that are worsening with climate change, such as food and water insecurities. As a CONSERVE summer intern Katherine is working with Dr. Rachel Goldstein of UMD Extension and Dr. Manan Sharma of the USDA on the use of alternative water sources for irrigation, including rooftop runoff and zero-valent iron and sand filtration. She hopes to gain experience analyzing data and writing scientific publications from the CONSERVE summer internship.

Christina Kundrat

Christina Kundrat is a third year student at the University of Delaware. She is majoring in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Environmental planning and design and minors in Geology and Coastal and Marine geology. Christina is interested in researching climate change, endangered species and sustainable water use. She is currently working with Dr. Masoud Negahban-Azar to determine future agricultural water use demand in the mid-atlantic region. While working with CONSERVE, Christina hopes to gain more knowledge on how to prevent future generations from running out of water.

Claudia Long Yee Yu

Claudia Long Yee Yu is a sophomore at the University of Arizona, majoring in Environmental Studies. Her research interests include investigating the relationships between humans and nature and how we can improve our environment through urban planning. Claudia is working with Dr. Amy Smith Muise at New Mexico State University on social media promotion and marketing on multiple interactive module projects. She hopes to expand her social network and improve her data analysis skills through participating in the CONSERVE Summer Intern Program.

Daisy-Noel Ndofor

Daisy-Noel Ndofor is a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park majoring in Environmental Science and Policy. She is interested in studying sustainable agriculture, and is working with Dr. Rachel Golstein, Dr. Leena Malayil and Dr. Amy Sapkota at the University of Maryland for her CONSERVE Summer Internship. Daisy is assisting with project RRIPER (Rooftop Runoff Irrigation Produce Eaten Raw). She hopes to learn more about the potential risks and human health implications of using rooftop harvested rainwater for growing crops. She is also hoping to enhance her critical thinking and research and analysis skills through the internship.

Sarah Sabet

Sarah Sabet is a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park pursuing a degree in Public Health Science. She is interested in microbiological research and environmental public health. Her internship advisors are Dr. Rachel Goldstein, Dr. Leena Malayil and Dr. Amy Sapkota of the University of Maryland, and Dr. Manan Sharma of the USDA. Sarah is working on project RRIPER (Rooftop Runoff Irrigation Produce Eaten Raw), as well as gaining experience in Extension publications and project planning. She is also working on a community garden survey to optimize urban garden water sources. For the USDA portion of her internship, Sarah will be investigating the reduction of pathogens in surface irrigation water through filtration techniques involving sand and zero-valent iron. She hopes to gain a greater understanding of environmental safety and water reuse as a public health issue through the CONSERVE 2020 Summer Intern Program. Additionally, she hopes to learn more about water reuse and different solutions, public perceptions, and safety at the microbiological level.

Mairead Whitford Jones

Mairead Whitford Jones is a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park majoring in Environmental Science and Technology with a concentration in Natural Resource Management. Her research interests include resource management, conservation, and wildlife. This summer, she is interning at CONSERVE with Dr. Masoud Negahban-Azar in the Water Security and Sustainability Lab. Mairead is working on analyzing data to help in the development of a decision support system for using reclaimed water in agricultural settings. She aims to gain more experience working with data in a real world setting.