Opportunities – Page 6 – Sustainability & Environment @ OWU

Watershed Walk: Sunday Sept. 23, 2018

Presented by the Northwest Neighborhood Association and the Central Ohio Communities Project

Forward to anyone you think would be interested.

When: Sunday, September 23, 2018

Mostly hidden and invisible, Delaware Run weaves itself through the fabric of the city and is often overlooked. The walk will shed light on this important natural resource. Participants can choose to do a deep exploration of the run or shorter jaunts along its course. Local scientists and experts will lead our walks and will explore the history, ecology and geologic features of the stream scavenger hunt style. Water quality testing and a stream clean-up will also be done on both walks. After the walks, we will meet at the Boardman Arts Park for EarthDance, a Rivermen concert, and various activities. RSVP for this FREE event: DelawareNNA.org

1:00 pm – 2:20 pm: Long Walk (starting at Olentangy by Selby Stadium)
1:30-2:10 pm: Short Walk (starting at Hidden Valley Golf Course)
2:30 pm – 4:30 pm: Trash weighing and Bingo scoring, gnome creating,
various activities and tables, refreshments
2:30 pm – 3:00 pm: EarthDance 2018
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm: Rivermen concert
4:30 pm: transportation back to cars offered

RSVP for this FREE event: DelawareNNA.org

PDF Poster here.

Campus Event: Climate Change: What We Know, and What We Can Do

A free, day-long meeting about earth’s climate at Ohio Wesleyan, Saturday, March 31, 2018

Free: Please RSVP here for the event next weekend.

Looking forward to seeing you all there!

Climate Change: What We Know, and What We Can Do

Saturday, 31 March 2018

2^nd and 3^rd Floors of Merrick Hall

Ohio Wesleyan University

Summary: The Anthropocene, the era in which humans have become the dominating factor to the global climate, is a period in the geologic history. For decades now, the public has heard of the phrases ‘global warming’ and ‘climate change.’ What continues to remain a challenge is the public’s understanding of the processes associated with the current global phenomenon. This workshop, supported by the Mellon Foundation, is an attempt to bring together climate scientists, industry, the public, and our academic institutions into one space to communicate what it means to be living in the Anthropocene. What do we know about it and what can we do about it? We seek to build long-term collaborations and help prepare a new generation of community members and scholars to address these concerns.

Preliminary Schedule

9:00-9:30 Check-in

9:30-9:45 Opening Remarks

9:45 – 11:15 Short Talks (with break)

11:15 – noon Keynote Speaker: Dr. Christopher Karmosky, SUNY Oneonta

Noon – 1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 3:30 Workshops

3:30 – 4:00 Closing Remarks

We are looking for 1 – 2 persons to volunteer to be moderators of the short workshop groups (approximately 6). The idea here is for people to gather by interest and work on defining an agenda or outcome of the workshop. Moderators would be tasked with taking notes and making sure the group is on task. There will be modest financial compensation for moderators.

Please RSVP here ASAP. If you have any question, feel free to ask Dustin (dsbraden@owu.edu) or Nathan (nsamador@owu.edu).

Students & Organizations: Sponsor a Rain Barrel!

Rain barrels have become increasingly popular. As a community, we can increase this popularity by making them more visually appealing. Businesses, organizations, and individuals have the opportunity to fund a rain barrel with an installation kit for $34. The cost includes sanding, washing, and priming each barrel before it is given for painting.

Sponsor a Rain Barrel!

Since 2014, the City of Delaware has organized the Northern Olentangy Watershed (NOW) Festival that highlights our local, water resources. This summer, the 5th annual NOW Festival will take place on June 16th at Mingo Park (500 E. Lincoln Ave. Delaware, OH) from 12-3 p.m. As part of the festival, the annual rain barrel raffle will occur. Rain barrels provide many stormwater benefits including:

Reduction of stormwater runoff
Providing a free/sustainable source of water for lawn and gardening care -Reduction of harmful pollutants being carried into our waterways
Reduction of ponding and flooding
Reduction of water bill costs

Rain barrels have become increasingly popular. As a community, we can increase this popularity by making them more visually appealing. Businesses, organizations, and individuals have the opportunity to fund a rain barrel with an installation kit for $34. The cost includes sanding, washing, and priming each barrel before it is given for painting. The barrels can be both sponsored and painted by the same entity, or a request can be made for a local art class to paint it. These barrels will be raffled off at the NOW Festival on June 16th at Mingo Park and proceeds will go to help support the Upper Olentangy River Watershed.

See form, below.

Payment must accompany the sponsorship requests. All rain barrel request forms must be received by Friday, April 13th by 4 p.m. The purchase of the rain barrel and kit is non-refundable.

Checks can be made out to “City of Delaware, Public Utilities” and mailed to:

City of Delaware
Caroline Cicerchi, Watershed Coordinator 
225 Cherry Street
Delaware, Ohio 43015

There are a limited number of barrels available for this opportunity. Once that limit has been obtained or the deadline for ordering has been reached the barrels will be distributed to the appropriate painters. Local art programs in the community, including local schools, have been contacted about painting some of these barrels. If you are interested in utilizing one of these programs, please indicate so on the order form. There may be a limit to these programs, so each request will be accommodated on a first-come basis. You will be notified by email once the supplies are available for pickup or delivery. It is expected that the rain barrels will start to be delivered or available for pick up starting Monday, April 2nd as requests are received.

If you are painting the barrel yourself, please use outdoor acrylic paint (same paint that is bought for painting the outside of houses, outdoor fencing, etc.). The rain barrels will need to be decorated by May 31st. Once decorated, you can put them on display at your business either inside or outside leading up to the Northern Olentangy Watershed (NOW) Festival or, if preferred, they can be dropped off at the Wastewater Treatment Plant Facility for the City to put them on display.

All painted barrels will need to be delivered to the City of Delaware’s Wastewater Treatment Plant Facility (225 Cherry St., Delaware, OH) before 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 13th.

Please consider participating in this fun event! The festival will be held at Mingo Park (500 E. Lincoln Ave., Delaware, Ohio) on June 16th from 12:00-3:00 p.m. Raffle ticket sales will begin at 12 p.m. and end at 2:30 p.m. with the winning ticket to be drawn shortly after.

Please contact Caroline Cicerchi, Watershed & Sustainability Coordinator, with any questions at 740-203-1905 or ccicerchi@delawareohio.net.

How to get a Land Management Job for Summer of 2018

This is a “How to get a Land Management Job for summer of 2018” i.e. work for the Forest Service or Park Service where the mountains are your office…

OWU Students,

This is a “How to get a Land Management Job for summer of 2018” i.e. work for the Forest Service or Park Service where the mountains are your office…

A little about me: My name’s Aaron McCown, I graduated from OWU in spring of 2011, and headed out to Montana to do a season with Montana Conservation Corps. I wanted an adventure and I got it. Within 2 weeks of leaving Delaware, OH, I was deep in the Northern Rockies. I spent the next 5 months in the Bob Marshall Wilderness that summer digging trails, swinging an ax, sawing logs with crosscut saws, and living in a tent – it was awesome. As much as I loved trail work, I saw the writing on the wall (thanks to my OWU education) and so I went off to the frontlines of climate change as a wildland firefighter the next summer, where I have been ever since. I’m currently a career employee on the Bitterroot National Forest and I really like my job:) Accordingly, I want to help current OWU students explore the world of Land Management via passing along some summer job opportunities, or rather, how to find those jobs and get them.

The vast public lands of the western US are managed by the US Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and numerous state agencies with help from a growing number of non-profit Americorps-funded Conservation Corps. Their workforce is mostly composed of temporary seasonal employees – in other words, the perfect summer jobs for college students!

What kind of jobs are there?

– trail maintenance

– maintaining and improving campgrounds

– marking timber for logging operations

– collecting data from field sites

– fighting wildfires

– spraying weeds

Admittedly, most of these entry-level jobs are fairly menial, but you will also use the skills you’ve learned at OWU. Reading maps, using GIS, measuring fuel samples (moisture content of vegetation), and inventorying the forest are all part of my regular duties. Also, this is the Federal Government we’re talking about and once you get your foot in the door, a nice benefits package including a pension, healthcare, matching retirement, etc does await you. So really, taking a job like this could be viewed as a decently paid internship.

On to the jobs…

Federal jobs are a little tricky to apply for. There is a certain dance you have to do. Right now, applying on time via USAJobs.gov is the most important step. Many seasonal jobs for the USFS in Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota are closing soon (on January 9th)! Most opportunities in the Southwest have already closed, because believe it or not, their field season is rapidly approaching! If I were you, I’d focus on Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Oregon, and Washington. Those area’s field seasons run much more inline with your summer break away (mid-May through the fall, but student employees are common, so fret not!).

Step 1: What do you want to do? And where do you want to work?

You need to figure out roughly what you want to do (dig trail, inventory vegetation, spray weeds, fight fire, etc) and the associated job. You will likely only qualify as a GS-03 or GS-04 grade employee as a college student.

Most of these jobs are going to be called “Forestry Technician,” “Forestry Aid,” “Range Technician,” and “Range Aid.” So you need to get on USAJobs.gov and search those positions.

Also figure out where roughly you want to work, e.g. Colorado or the Northern Rockies or Yellowstone National Park, because later you will need to call those places and talk to the hiring official. Here’s a list of National Forests to get you started. https://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/map/state_list.shtml

Another option, is to use this website: https://fsoutreach.gdcii.com/Outreach

I’d recommend setting the search functions to: Opportunity > Temporary Appointment; Series > 0462 Forestry Technician; Grade > 03 or 04; and Within State > Utah/Idaho/Montana/North Dakota/Wyoming, etc

If you really want to go spend next summer working for the Land Management Agencies, I’d recommend applying to 30+ positions.

Step 2: USAJOBS.GOV

All Federal hiring goes through USAJobs.gov and it can be a real pain!

Your USAJobs application must be very thorough. Unlike many lines of work, the Feds want LONG RESUMES. Like pages and pages of info. Include very detailed accounts (e.g. several paragraph essays) of each job/work experience you’ve had. Also include any and all relevant skills and experiences including sports, outdoor hobbies, any 1st Aid/CPR training you’ve ever had, and relevant classes you’ve taken.

Also upload a short cover letter saying why you want to get a summer job in Land Management and include a short “normal” resume (and label it as such), which some hiring officials may prefer.

The reason for the excessively long USAJOB resume is that basically a computer screens it before any human. It’s a good idea to include “buzz words” and phrases from the description of the job to which you are applying.

When you’re done, make sure you application is actually submitted and it’s on time.

Step 3: Calling People – THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP

You need to call and talk to people at Yellowstone NP or wherever you want a job. Applying online is basically only a formality. You need to CALL the various parks/forests you’ve just applied to (use google & call the front desk) and ask to talk to the hiring person for trails/fire/weeds/range/timber/recreation. You can call before you submit an application, but again, time is ticking for the 2018 field season!

Just call the front desk and ask for whoever does the hiring for “fire” or “trails” or “weeds” or “recreation.”

Have a few lines rehearsed about why you want the job and why youre worth hiring. Ask questions about their program, the local area, what you’d be doing if you got hired, if they have housing, when you’d start work. Hiring officials keep “score” of who called, when, and how good they sounded. You can leave a message and hiring officials will usually call you back.

Have a resume ready to email them and offer to do so.

It also helps to keep a spreadsheet or at least notes of all the places you’ve called, and who you talked to, etc

Step 4: Await your fate…

Although the Fed’s are currently taking applications, it might be a few months before they tell anyone that they have a job. Basically, your application is going to go into a massive system and it will take weeks of screening before it gets to those hiring officials who you need to call. Once it gets to them via a Referral List, they can then choose who they hire. So you need to make the list and call those folks they choose your name off the list.

Step 5: Managing job offers.

Come late February/March/April, you’ll start hearing back from those folks who you called… Here’s my advice:

* Accept your 1st offer no matter what.

* Accept all subsequent offers that you are interested in.

* Finally, go with the offer that you’re most interested in and call everyone else and tell them that you’ve taken a different job. It’s no skin off their back and you will not be black listed.

Final advice… Getting your foot in the door is important, but this is temporary seasonal work… there’s always next summer. It took me 3 years to get a job with the USFS Forest Service. I’m from the East Coast and was hired for my 1st firefighter job in Idaho while vacationing in Costa Rica. Yup, I was calling back to the US and begging for jobs on the beach and it worked out just fine. Did my hiring packet in a computer in Nicaragua…

But if you don’t get a job with the Feds this year, there’s always Americorps.

Americorps Conservation Corps

I’m not going to go into nearly as much detail with the Conservation Corps, as each one is different and their websites and application processes are much more straight forward. Basically, they are all modern day spin-offs of the Civilian Conservation Corps from the New Deal, but nowadays they’re all non-profit corporations that get funding through Americorps (which is a big Federal fund of money) so long as they meet certain criteria.

Admittedly, the pay with Conservation Corps is much less, as these are truly internship, but they are VERY FUN experiences. You will make some great friends and build a solid resume if a career in Land Management truly interests you. I’ve worked for both Montana Conservation Corps and Arizona Conservation Corps (formerly Southwest CC). Both were great organizations and I have nothing but good things to say about them. Anyhoo, here’s a brief list for ya:

Arizona Conservation Corps

California Conservation Corps

Montana Conservation Corps

Northwest Youth Corps

(^ just Google these, I’m not gonna bother with links)

There are definitely more out there, I believe Vermont has one, but again, these organizations are much easier to find and apply to online. There’s not quite the dance as there is with the Feds.

Summer 2017 Paid Internship: GIS/GPS for DelCo Water Company, Delaware, Ohio

A summer 2017 internship in Delaware, Ohio, appropriate for OWU students with some background in using GPS and GIS.

GIS/GPS Data Collection Intern: Delaware, Ohio, Summer 2017

Delco Water Company: http://delcowater.org

Reports to: GIS Manager/Engineering Supervisor, Department: Engineering

$10.00 – $14.00 per hour

To apply for this Internship, please email a current resume and cover letter to: gis@delcowater.com

Deadline to Apply: April 4, 2017 at 4:30PM

Area of Responsibilities: Assist in the collection of the Del-Co Geographic Information System (GIS) Data. The individual will assist Del-Co personnel with information upon request.

Summary of Responsibilities: Essential duties and responsibilities include the following. Other duties may be assigned as required.

GPS field collection of water system asset locations and attributes.
QA/QC of GPS data collection by Del-Co personnel.
Properly store and organize GIS information in relation to Del-Co standards
Editing of spatial data based on data acquired through as-built research and field collection. This will include correctly digitizing GIS assets and adding/updating attribute values based on corrected information.
Compiling of data based on user requests and presenting in requested formats such as maps, tables, etc.
Perform other duties as required.

Additional Responsibilities:

Know and follow all safety guidelines and best practices for position.
Work as a team member and cooperate with others on group projects.
Maintain a positive work atmosphere by acting and communicating in a manner so that you get along with customers, client, co- workers and management.
Know and uphold the policies, procedures and philosophies of Del-Co Water Co., Inc.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Current student or recently graduated from an accredited college/university with an area of focus in GIS or related field
Experience with GPS equipment and software particularly with Trimble TerraSync a plus
Experience with GIS web mapping applications
General understanding of how to read Engineering plans and As-Built Drawings preferred
Proficiency in Microsoft Office
Valid Ohio Driver’s License and acceptable driving record

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

This is light work requiring the exertion of 20 pounds of force occasionally and up to 10 pounds of force frequently. Most work will be outdoors, possibly in inclement weather, and require a considerable amount of walking. The work requires visual acuity to operate computer equipment and for reviewing, checking, preparing and maintaining written and computer files. Manual dexterity is required to operate standard office, data entry, word processing and other computer equipment. Incumbent is required to have sufficient hearing ability to perceive information at normal spoken word levels. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this job.

OWU Talk: Translocal Relations and Climate Change in East Asia: March 28

Translocal Relations and Climate Change in East Asia

Tuesday, March 28 — 7:00 p.m. — Merrick Hall 301 Ohio Wesleyan University

Guest Lecturer: Taedong Lee

Why do local governments become actively engaged in the issue of global climate change? How do global factors influence local governments’ choices, policies, and interactions? These questions are puzzling in that local governments have been regarded as public service providers in the domestic arena; and studies on cities and climate change have primarily focused on domestic drivers to explain local governments’ climate change policies. In this talk, I discuss translocal relations of cities that have made an international effort to collectively tackle climate change. Compared to state-centric terms, inter-national or trans-national relations, trans-local relations look at policies, politics, and interactions of local governments in the globalized world. Using the framework of translocal relations, I argue that the level of global cityness and local political attributes are primary driving factors for local governments’ engagement in global climate governance in Asia as well as around the world.

Taedong Lee is associate professor at the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Yonsei University, Seoul. He received his Ph.D. at University of Washington, Seattle and was an assistant professor at the City University of Hong Kong from 2010 to 2013. His areas of research include global and sub-national environmental politics and policy, NGO politics, and social network analysis. Professor Lee recently published his book, Global Cities and Climate Change: Translocal Relations of Environmental Governance (Routledge, 2015). His articles have appeared in journals including Policy Sciences, Review of Policy Research, Journal of Cleaner Production, Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, Policy Studies Journal, Energy Policy, and Global Environmental Politics.

Lecture is free and open to the public. Sponsored by the East Asian Studies Program, the Departments of Politics and Government and Sociology/ Anthropology, and the Office of the Provost.

taedong-lee-lecture-poster

OWU Travel Learning Course to Costa Rica, Fall 2017

Interested in visiting the tropics? In January? Fall 2017 Travel Course: Geography 347TL: Environmental Alteration, Dr. Amador Rowley

Interested in visiting the tropics? In January?

Fall 2017 OWU Travel Course

Geography 347TL: Environmental Alteration, Dr. Amador Rowley

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Locations throughout Costa Rica, focusing on a small, coastal town: Bahia Ballena

Assess human impacts on natural environments in Delaware, OH (Fall ‘17) and coastal Costa Rica (Jan. ‘18), putting it into a regional and global context.

Collaborate with Amy Work, OWU Alum (‘04), and her community organization, Geoporter, and work with local citizens in a developing ecotourism region.

screen-shot-2017-03-09-at-10-56-56-am

Activities Include:

Visiting Palm Oil & Pineapple Plantations
Coffee Plantation
Coastal Community Mapping Using Drone
Biological Nature & Toucan Reserves
Visit Bat Sanctuary
Testing Water Quality
Kayaking through Mangroves

Contact: Dr. Nathan Amador Rowley with any questions (nsamador@owu.edu)

Sustainable Gardening: New OWU .25 Credit Activity Course 2nd Module Spring 2017

OWU students and faculty have initiated an effort to offer sustainability themed quarter credit activity courses beginning in the 2nd module for the spring semester of 2017.

This Activity Course has been postponed to the Fall of 2017! Contact Emily Howald for more information.

OWU students and faculty have initiated an effort to offer sustainability themed quarter credit activity courses beginning in the 2nd module for the spring semester of 2017. Instead of yoga or bowling (which are both great) you can instead get active digging in the dirt.

The class is run by staff from the very nearby Seminar Hill Farm, a leading regional organic farm. The class is one part of a strategy to make our campus garden sustainable and productive.

The class meets M and W from 2:30-3:30 in the garden near the old observatory on campus. Please contact Emily Howald for more information. Watch for the course as an option in the near future on Self-Service.

OWU Environmental Studies & Sustainability Progress, Spring 2017

Established and ongoing efforts in environment and sustainability by Ohio Wesleyan students, staff and faculty and off-campus collaborators active during the 2016-17 academic year.

Established and ongoing efforts in environment and sustainability by Ohio Wesleyan students, staff and faculty and off-campus collaborators active during the 2016-17 academic year.

A PDF of this document is available here.

OWU Sustainability Plan: As a liberal arts institution, Ohio Wesleyan University must be a leader in progressive sustainability initiatives through educational, technical, and social means. The proposed Ohio Wesleyan Sustainability Plan (click for PDF) is intended to invigorate and expand a culture of sustainability that has a positive impact on the environment. Draft of the OWU Sustainability Plan, created by faculty, staff and students, is complete and being revised and vetted. Students in our Sustainability Practicum are currently arranging to move the proposed plan through OWU’s administrative network during the spring of 2017.

May Move Out: A student-initiated project in collaboration with Goodwill, to defer usable materials from the trash as students move off campus in May. We defer 10 tons of reusable furniture, appliances, clothes, bikes, etc. on average, each May. Students are currently meeting with OWU’s Buildings & Grounds and Residential Life staff to plan for and promote the 2017 May Move Out. Ohio Wesleyan’s May Move Out program was awarded the 2015 Recycling Award from the Keep Delaware County Beautiful Coalition.

Reusable Food Containers in Hamilton Williams Campus Center: A student project initiated in the Fall of 2015 is being expanded during the spring of 2017. A new dishwasher was installed in our campus center in part to provide adequate washing of the containers. Students and campus food service staff are working to improve and expand the program during the Spring of 2017.

Environmental Science Major: A proposal for an Environmental Science major (in addition to our 39 year old Environmental Studies major) will be brought before OWU committees and faculty for consideration and approval during the Spring of 2017.

Environmental Studies Minor in Food Studies: A Food Studies Minor (developed from the Food Course Connection) is in place (a collaboration between Health and Human Kinetics [HHK] and Environmental Studies). Two more minors, Sustainability and Climate Science are being developed.

Living Green Infrastructure Proposal: Students and staff are working on a proposal for a Living Green residence hall option. 1) Develop structural sustainability. 2) Allow students to live more sustainably by reducing their water, energy, and material waste. 3) Include workshop/classroom area for sustainable learning (repair, self-production). 4) Trained RA’s to be sustainable life assistants.

Delaware Foodshed Farm and Food Collaboration: Building on the Food Studies Minor and student interest in gardens, farming and food, OWU faculty in Environmental Studies and HHK are developing a collaboration between Stratford Ecological Center farms and the Methodist School of Ohio farms. Initial efforts will focus on student internships and engagement of OWU in a regional food network. With financial support for staff (donations or grants) campus gardens will be developed. Efforts will focus on the practice of ecologically sound farming, food production, regional food networks and social outreach (building on the existing Cooking Matters Program, organized by Dr. Chris Fink) to engage students and community members in growing food.

Environmental and Sustainability Internships: Eight to ten internships are being offered on a regular basis at Stratford Ecological Center and the City of Delaware. Foci include environmental education, marketing, farming, and sustainability. Additional internships will be available at the Seminary Hill Farm (Methodist Theological School of Ohio) Fall 2017.

Global Environmental Change Collaboration & Travel Learning Course: OWU collaboration with Amy Work (OWU ‘04) and her organization GeoPorter in Bahia Ballena-Uvita, Costa Rica. Learning and using environmental assessment methods in Delaware, Ohio (Fall 2017) and during a travel learning course trip (Dr. Nathan Amador’s Geography 347) to coastal Costa Rica (January 2018). Goal: to understand how local environmental data is collected and relates to regional and global climate and environmental change.

Chimney Swift Towers: A collaboration between students and OWU Alumni Dick Tuttle (OWU 1973) to build a chimney swift tower on the residential side of campus. Plans have been drawn up and cost estimates provided by a contractor. Funds will be provided by Tuttle. We anticipate construction during the spring or summer of 2017 pending approval from B&G and OWU’s Administration.

Campus Wildlife Habitat Enhancements: Student efforts continue to install and maintain bird houses, feeders and solitary bee houses on campus.

Green Week 2017: Building on a successful week of events in 2016, students are organizing another week of events for the spring of 2017 (the week prior to Earth Day).

Delaware Run Assessment and Restoration: Ongoing project focused on restoring Delaware Run between Sandusky St. and Henry St. Emerging collaboration with stream restoration specialists who propose restoration of the stream and adjacent riparian zone in return for state of Ohio stream credits. Currently waiting on the establishment of an official Ohio stream banking and credit procedure.

Bottled Water Sales Reduction: Student-led efforts to drive down bottled water purchases on campus, including the installation of hydration stations and promotion of reusable water bottles. Bottled water sales have dropped significantly in the last three years. We continue to install hydration stations (filtered water) at key locations as an alternative to bottled water.

OWU ’17 Michael Durfee: Summer ’16 Diving Internship

Michael Durfee, OWU 2017, is an Environmental Studies and Medieval Studies dual major, and participated in a summer 2016 master diver apprenticeship in Cozumel, Mexico.

Michael Durfee, OWU 2017, is an Environmental Studies and Medieval Studies dual major, and participated in a summer 2016 master diver apprenticeship in Cozumel, Mexico.

Michael Durfee
October 27, 2016

One of the first lessons we are taught as divers is that we are the stewards, the voice of, and the ambassadors of the underwater world. Nobody else has the means to be so intimate with this environment. Even if for no reason other than we love being in it, we must help protect it.

The Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) stresses the importance of the environment throughout a diver’s training. They teach us how to be careful of sensitive aquatic ecosystems (by maintaining good buoyancy, kicking properly, by knowing we won’t be attacked by animals unless we harass them, or simply by not touching things). PADI provides examples in their training books of ways to be active in the fight to keep our waters healthy.

PADI also advertise and teach Project AWARE both as an independent project and movement and as a specialty course for certification (AWARE Fish Identification, AWARE Shark Conservation, AWARE Underwater Naturalist for example). Project AWARE is the environmental movement within diving, started years ago by PADI and broken off into something grander. AWARE stands for Aquatic World Awareness Responsibility and Education. At its most basic we are given its Ten Ways a Diver Can Protect the Underwater Environment. These are: 1) Dive carefully, 2) Be aware of your body and equipment, 3) Keep your dive skills sharp, 4) Consider your actions, 5) Understand and respect underwater life, 6) Be an Ecotourist, 7) Respect underwater cultural heritage, 8) Report environmental disturbances or destruction, 9) Be a role model, and 10) Get involved.

I went to Cozumel, Mexico to earn my PADI Professional Divemaster rating. I chose a very good location for this dive training. Reasons for this are many, but primarily for the fact that the waters surrounding the island are a huge Marine National Park. All divers are required to be extra careful and mindful. For example, nobody is allowed to dive without a local Divemaster. There are extensive, complex coral reefs along the entire west side of the island. There was greater pressure for me to become a better, more skilled diver here. I have confidence in my abilities to observe sensitive organisms without any accidental harm occurring.

Diving these world famous coral reefs was remarkable and eye opening for me. I can hardly express what I have learned. I am familiar with numerous species of fish and am only just beginning to understand how they interconnect to form this ecosystem. I learned how a coral reef works in its most fundamental sense and how nearby wetlands like Mangroves can be essential to the reef’s continued survival.

Simply by observation while in over 60 dives, I got to see how some aquatic animals rely on the health of their coral environment. Health has multiple aspects.

I’ve chosen a few examples.

The sea turtles around Cozumel, most commonly the Green Sea Turtle and the Loggerhead Turtle, depend on coral reefs for food and protection.

The turtles will lie there chomping on coral, digging at it with their beaks. I may postulate that the type of coral matters, which makes the coral and sponge diversity important to the turtles.The relative shallow depths of these reefs allow turtles to live and feed well while still having fairly quick access to the surface for air. Here is a Green Sea Turtle who was eating but is now looking at the diver taking the photo.

Often while I was diving I thought to myself how odd some of the fish I see are. Many seem to be just generic and what a human might expect, but others not so much. Filefish are one of these oddities. I love to wonder why they look like they do – inspiring research on my part.

Watching The fish feed is the biggest clue. Their mouths are specialized for a certain diet. What exactly they eat I do not know, but they use their outwards-pointing teeth and elongated mouth to scrape their food off the bottom and the coral. Being so specialized may indicate an existence more vulnerable to environmental changes. Of the animal species here, it is the oddities, the curiosities and the fantastic that are the first to leave when conditions change.

The Drumfish is one of the most elegant and beautiful species of fish I was ever fortunate enough to observe. They are shy and love to hide under small, shallow ledges. Diversity of structure is one of the most important aspects of coral reef health. In this case, structural diversity allows for the shy to hide their faces and the very shy to hide their entire body. An example of the very shy would include the endemic species to Cozumel, the Splendid Toadfish who hides in a hole day and night.

Another species which appreciates the structural diversity of coral reef systems is the Stonefish, the most poisonous fish in the world.

Stonefish are docile, though, and are named for their ability to blend in with their surroundings and look like a stone or piece of coral. They are one reason why divers in the Caribbean try not to touch the reefs. If we imagine a reef that has been bleached or depleted in its various diversities, a Stonefish would not survive.

There are dozens of animals species which rely on the existence of coral reefs and their diversity. A diver’s awareness of this as connected to their choices and advocacy on land is an essential power. We can help advocate for more Marine National parks and sustainable fishing regulations. We can use sustainably produced products which would not create by-product which ends up in the ocean. We can use sustainable energy sources and/or cut back on overall energy consumption. Our mindful choices have a say in whether these beautiful places and animals will survive.

Having learned in a Marine National Park in Cozumel gave me a heightened sense of my duty as a now Professional diver. My Divemaster training stressed that one of my most essential duties is to be a good role model. This means being a skillful and knowledgeable diver, embracing and adhering to PADI Standards (which keep divers and the environment safe) and embracing and adhering to Project AWARE teachings.