What inspired your environmental passion, and how do you provide those experiences to others? For younger ones, the great outdoors is an important start.
Author: Sarah Loftus
Sarah is a first-year graduate student in the University Program in Ecology within the Nicholas School. Her motivation for graduate study comes from a desire to research practical solutions to environmental problems, mostly those caused by the use of fossil fuels. Her chosen research focus is on cultivation of algae for biofuels. Sarah is spending her first academic year in Durham before joining the Johnson Lab out in Beaufort at the Duke University Marine Lab.
Sarah credits high school projects on Jane Goodall and John Muir for initially sparking her environmental passion, which has ultimately decided her academic path. She is a recent graduate of Cornell University ('13) in Ithaca, NY, where she majored in Environmental Engineering within the Department of Biological & Environmental Engineering. Her undergraduate research experiences involved working with syngas-fermenting bacteria in a bioenergy Lab, and with phytoplankton of the St. Lawrence River during a summer REU program. At Cornell, she was involved in various sustainability projects and engaged in a STEM outreach program for middle school girls. Sarah is also highly addicted to distance running, having completed four marathons to date, and treasures the gorges and trails of Ithaca but is excited to explore what Durham has to offer!
Ecology Symposium comes to the Marine Lab
Graduate students, postdocs, and professors spanning multiple departments at Duke gathered at the Marine Lab for the 2nd annual Duke Ecology Symposium.
Oh, the Outreach You’ll Do
Outreach is a major buzzword in grad school and academia. It can take a variety of forms, from formal education to get-your-hands-dirty activities. February was an important outreach month with two major Duke-related events occurring.
It All Comes Out in the Wash?
“No-poo” has become a trending alternative to using commercial shampoos. People have many reasons for turning to alternative hair washing options, and one of these is the fact that most of our shampoo ingredients will eventually end up in the environment from either treated wastewater or biosolids. So I decided to try no-poo for myself, but the experience was less simple than I’d imagined.
Sarah Loftus
coasts, Duke Marine Lab, energy, events, PhD, Slide Shows, student life, students, travel, water
coasts, Duke Marine Lab, energy, events, PhD, Slide Shows, student life, students, travel, water
Algae Farming
Last month I attended the Algae Biomass Summit in San Diego, where I learned from “algae farmers” and visited a facility that produces algae nutrient supplements. This post includes a video of photos and clips from my trip to San Diego.
The Wastewater Cycle
Come along on a walking tour of the the Beaufort wastewater treatment plant (WWTP).
Garden to Fork
A few nights a week I leave the Marine Lab with dirt underneath my fingernails. This soil and the plants it supports represent the continued efforts of students before me who established and maintained theContinue reading
Ocean Sampling Day
The Duke Marine Lab participated in Ocean Sampling Day on the 2014 summer solstice by sampling coastal waters from Pivers Island in Beaufort, NC.
New Places, New Faces
This weekend I moved to Beaufort, home of the Duke Marine Laboratory and its new Orrin Pilkey research laboratory.
Running with Green Cups and Green Ambitions
You run over a carpet of flattened green paper cups deposited on the pavement by thousands of runners ahead of you. Lined-up volunteers in official neon jackets offer the Poland Spring water and lemon-lime GatoradeContinue reading