Meet the 2024 JRBP Stewardship Interns, John and Nick!
Photo: Nick Rodriguez (left) and John Lowndes (right) in the field with mentor Sheena Sidhu (middle).
Summer 2024 has brought us into the second year of our Stewardship Intern Program at Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve ('Ootchamin 'Ooyakma). Meet our 2024 Stewardship Interns, Nick Rodriguez and John Lowndes (read their biographies below). Both Stanford undergraduates will join our team and work with Jasper Ridge staff, researchers, visitors, and docents to expand stewardship efforts at the preserve through supporting ongoing landscape monitoring, independent research, and contributing to community development with Muwekma Ohlone youth.
Supported by the Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation with its mission to support innovative people working in field-based science, art and craft, teaching and protection of the natural world, the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve Stewardship Intern Program is an exciting initiative that empowers aspiring students interested in conservation to get out into the field. This immersive program was created for undergraduate students seeking hands-on, real-world experience with active environmental stewardship while developing skills in ecology, natural history and field work. Over the course of the summer, Nick and John will work closely with Dr. Sheena Sidhu, our stewardship scientist, and other Stanford University researchers and land managers to directly support land management and stewardship efforts at Jasper Ridge, such as measuring the outcomes of vegetative fuel reduction to mitigate wildfire risk and helping to create a comprehensive invasive species management plan. Both students will also have the opportunity to develop an independent research or education project based on their interests which will support the growing stewardship efforts at Jasper Ridge.
Learn more about the Stewardship Interns below!
Stewardship Intern John Lowndes holding a fence lizard outside of the Conservation Program office.
My name is John Lowndes, and I am a rising senior at Stanford pursuing a major in Earth Systems with a concentration in Land Systems. I am from Orlando, Florida, with roots in northwest Alaska where I am an enrolled tribal member of the Native Village of Selawik. I have lived and worked around Alaska, from the northwest arctic as a commercial fisherman down to Southeast Alaska working to protect the Tongass National Forest, and in Anchorage, where I spent part of my youth skiing, hiking, hunting, and shoveling snow. While at school in California, I am a student employee at the Stanford Conservation Program, working to protect biodiversity on the university’s campus, and I sit on the university’s Climate Action Plan advisory committee as an undergraduate representative. I am a docent at Jasper Ridge, and I look forward to getting out into the field this summer to continue to research invasive and endangered species at the preserve. As a Stewardship Intern, I am excited to continue to learn about the preserve and the land that it occupies, and to see the familiar faces of the frogs, fish, and foliage around Jasper Ridge.
Stewardship Intern Nick Rodriguez after participating in a restoration project in Pacifica.
My name is Nick Rodriguez, and I am a rising senior exploring the field of Biology – specifically ecology, evolution, and the environment. I’ve always been drawn to studying nature, and one of my earliest memories is of flipping rocks and logs in my yard to look at all the bugs underneath. Although I grew up in Dallas TX, I have fallen in love with California ecosystems and love going on hikes with my camera in hand. My first experience with field work was in the Arizona desert last summer at the Southwestern Research Station. I learned a ton about the effects of climate change while working there, and I am ready to continue learning about conservation this summer at Jasper Ridge! I’ve visited the preserve for a few classes, but I am beyond excited to experience what stewardship means firsthand. As of right now, I plan on pursuing a PhD in biology to help research how climate change is affecting life on earth. I am constantly learning more about who we share this planet with, and I want to make sure that others can do the same for many years to come.
