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Summer 2013

Newsletter Archive

 

Staff Profile: Lisa Boyer, Summer Student

 
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Student at MRU, Candidate for BSc - Environmental Science 2016

My appreciation for the environment started at an early age. I grew up in the Okanagan Valley, and I would say my most memorable moments were spent on the tops of apple trees playing hide and seek with my older sisters. Climbing up the twisted branches, I could see nothing but more treetops and blue skies. Often we spent days in the Kettle Valley, dipping our toes in to some of the cleanest and coldest water we could find. To this day one of my favorite activities is simply positioning myself on an air mattress in the calmest pools on the Kettle River and watching the fish glide through the glacial flows below. It is in these moments that I felt earnest connection to nature.

I am grateful for the opportunity to have my first work experience in the environmental field with the Miistakis Institute. Being able to gain exposure to conservational concerns is a direct reminder of why I chose to become involved in this field in the first place. With the intention of pursing a graduate degree in environmental and resource management, my work with Miistakis has allowed me to build a foundation for the future.

My role as a summer student at Miistakis is to conduct a literature review on the economic impacts of wildlife on the beef industry by exploring grey literature and previous research studies. Ranchers not only experience direct losses as a result of depredation but they are also subject to indirect losses through property damage, cattle weight loss from stress, ungulate competition for forage, implementation of management and preventive strategies to mitigate losses, and the list goes on.

Each Miistakian has given me one, if not several, reasons to look up to them as mentors. They are always willing and able to help me navigate my growing knowledge base in conjunction with the project specific intricacies that are only learned experientially rather than academically. I am thankful to have the exposure to those that have such rich experience to draw from.