Fellowship Experiences

It’s 5:20 a.m. and the alarm is blaring. I get out of bed, drink a glass of water, and lace up my shoes. I open the door and am greeted by the cold, dark morning. I begin slowly jogging, gradually accelerating to a comfortable pace, and continue this simple exercise of placing one foot in front of the other for the next 30 to 60 minutes.

“Livelihood diversification” describes the process by which an individual or household takes on multiple income-generating activities.

Since moving to Baltimore in 2015, I wanted to be a volunteer at the National Aquarium. At that time, I was a lab technician at Loyola University Maryland who regularly took care of reptiles, rodents, and greenhouse plants, so I thought I would be a shoe-in. Eagerly, I filled out the online volunteer application and waited patiently for an invitation. Weeks, months, and years went by.  Read more...

Oysters are crucial to a healthy Chesapeake Bay. They filter water, attract biodiversity and provide essential habitat for other important Bay organisms. Today, less than one percent of the oyster biomass that existed before European settlers arrived remains in the Chesapeake.  Read more...

In early March, I visited the Anacostia River in Washington D.C. for the first time.

As I sat on the boat and looked out at the waters around me, I noticed large piles of trash floating along the sides of the river channel, harmful algal blooms clogging the river’s downstream reaches, and poor water quality, indicated by the deep brown color.