Eli Mennerick

Undergraduate Fellow

"Part of what attracted me to the Forest Biodiversity team is that we get to be outside all of the time. I’ve been interested in studying environmental science. I was attracted to the large-scale nature of the research, seeing the complexity of and learning more about these native forests that I’ve grown up in, and seeing the day-to-day tasks of field research.

It could be a lot harder to bear, because it’s the same tasks every day and sometimes it’s really hot. We’re outside basically all day, measuring trees. I think this team does a good job of keeping up morale. We joke around a lot and have fun at the same time that we do work; that’s really the best part."

If you had to describe the team in one object, what would it be?

"I think I’d describe it as... this hot pink tool belt. It’s loud and energetic, but it also gets work done."

Eli worked with Jonathan Myers' Forest Biodiversity team during summer 2018. Learn more about their long-term temperate forest research here and their prescribed fire experiment here.