“I want to create more effective conservation strategies to change the trend line of populations that are endangered.” PROTECTING OUR WILDLIFE, ONE SPECIES AT A TIME

Katie Goulder ’12

Katie Goulder graduated from Kenyon College in 2016 after majoring in biology and earning minor degrees in environmental science and anthropology. She went on to work in sea turtle conservation up and down the East Coast doing research on nesting females and hatchlings during the summer nesting months in the South and then working in rescue and rehabilitation of cold-stunned juveniles and sub-adults during the winter months in the Northeast. She continued to work in sea turtle and marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation for two years before seeking out experience with largerscale conservation strategies focused on the monitoring and restoration of wetlands. Katie currently lives in Boston and is pursuing her Master of Science in environmental science and policy at Northeastern University.

Tell us a little bit about your work. I went from MKA to Kenyon College and graduated as a biology and environmental studies major. Since then, I've been working in wildlife conservation, primarily with endangered species. Much of my work has been doing nesting work with sea turtles in Florida and South Carolina. I patrol beaches, look for nests, and identify species. Once the turtles hatch, I do a full inventory to figure out how many eggs were there, how many hatched, and how many survived. I have also done genetic testing on some of them in order to identify nesting females. I've spent quite a bit of time back up in Boston as well as on Long Island doing rescue and rehab on cold stunned sea turtles. When turtles are migrating south, they can get caught in Cape Cod, which looks and acts like a giant hook, and sometimes they get stuck in the Long Island Sound. They wash up cold stunned, which is essentially hypothermic shock. It takes a couple of months of rehab to get them back to normal, and if it is successful, the turtles can go back out into the wild where they belong. When you're dealing with endangered species, every individual matters. Recently, I have pivoted a bit and worked in wetlands rather than with a particular animal. It’s been interesting to get both perspectives of narrow species-specific work versus habitat management.

What areas of opportunity in regards to environmental science excite you the most right now? I think there's much to be excited about. We often hear doom and gloom regarding environmental conservation, and I don’t think that's unrealistic. However, I also believe many positive things are happening in response to current pressures that we need to focus on more. One important factor I've come across often in my line of work is that a community that believes in your mission and is willing to help can really makes a difference. Places where I've worked in the South, like Sanibel, FL in particular, have a communities that are dedicated to their sea turtle nesting program. Tons of volunteers get up at 5:00 a.m. to go patrol in hot, muggy, awful conditions just because they're dedicated to the cause, and it makes a big difference. Organizations that are small and underfunded rely on volunteers and the community to support their work.As climate change is becoming more prevalent and more people are accepting it as a serious issue, more people want to get involved. Support is going to make a huge difference in terms of resources from both a monetary and time perspective.

What do you believe are the largest obstacles related to environmental science that exist currently? I think one of the biggest issues is the lag of policy behind science. You can do the research, get the results, and say, "Here's what you need to do,” but putting directives into action is tough. There are great challenges in implementing the necessary changes. The sooner we can start working towards fixing the disconnect between science and policy, the better.

In what ways did MKA prepare you for the path your life has taken? I got a great foundation and education from teachers who were engaging.

What is one piece of advice you would give to current MKA students? I've had a weird path in getting to where I am today; it definitely has not been a straight line! So going off of that, my advice would be to give current students the advice I would have liked to hear, such as it’s okay not to know what you want to be when you grow up. It's okay not to have a specific career path to follow. It's okay to change paths once you've already started down the one you thought was the right one. I would even argue that it can be better for your metaphorical path to look more like a maze because I think all experiences have value, even if it's just to teach you what you don't want in either a job or a career. All these experiences teach you new perspectives that can be beneficial as you move forward. Be open to experiences that are a bit outside the box and be curious and learn as much as you possibly can from every experience. You're setting yourself up for success for the day when you finally say, ”That's it. That's what I want to be."