Chicago Botanic Garden Fall 2019

chicagobotanic.org 25 Imeña Valdes , REU (2017), master’s of science, plant biology and conserva- tion (2018): I was a nutrition major, but became interested in agroecology and started working in the garden we had on campus. I liked the hands-on aspect of being outside and working with plants before they turned into food. When I studied pollination, I started to really appreciate how long it takes for food to turn into what you see at the grocery store. Nyree Zerega , Ph.D., joint program director: Starting college, I thought I would study linguistics. en I took a required biology class and met people who were studying plants and was fas- cinated. So I became a biology major. Before that, I didn’t know that a career in botany was even a direction I could take. When I started to learn more about the hundreds of thousands of plant species that are foundational parts of the ecosystems we all rely on for a healthy, functioning environ- ment, I thought there just aren’t enough people pursuing careers related to plants. I wanted to do that and to be a voice for plants. Andrea Gruver , REU (2014), master’s of science, plant biology and conserva- tion (2017): I rst came here in 2014 for the REU program, and then I spent two years working here as a research as- sistant. In 2017 I started the joint mas- ter’s program. Eventually I want to do research and study bees. How does your mentoring relationship at the Garden influence your work in plant science? Lichtenberger: ere’s no pressure for my mentor to push me in a certain direction. I have a lot of freedom to fol- low my interests in science communi- cations because of the unique relationship I have here. Kristen Manion , REU (2016), mas- ter’s of science, plant biology and con- servation (2017): is program does a really great job in preparing you for academic and non-academic careers. If you’re interested in a Ph.D., that op- portunity exists. If you want to pursue applied conservation or science com- munication, there are so many oppor- tunities and support here to do that, too. It’s a great stepping stone early in your career to even decide what route you want to go. I’m interested in sci- ence education right now so I’m con- sidering teaching high school science. Fant : Most of us have a mentor story that changed the way we do our work. I think we all aspire to be that same kind of person for someone else. Men- tees challenge you to look deeply at your projects and consider whether there’s a better way to do it. Once they leave, most of these mentees become colleagues. What does science mentorship mean for protecting the future of plants? Manion : It’s really rewarding to see students take projects we have in mind for them and make them their own. It involves a lot of mentorship on our end, but it also means that the students have gotten to that point where they’re asking their own questions and partici- pating in the scienti c process inde- pendently of us. Crawford : ese mentoring relation- ships are really important for keeping people in our eld and for bringing in the next generation. We hear about mentoring relationships going away in the business world. It’s not going away here. Learn more chicagobotanic.org/research Andrea Gruver future plant champions