For 2023 alumni Alice Fodor and Hannah Connuck, studying environmental science at Franklin & Marshall helped them land full-time roles with the Chesapeake Watershed Initiative (CWI) shortly after graduation.

Established in 2021 with a $1.25 million grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, the Chesapeake Watershed Initiative studies the impact of human activity on tributaries that drain into the Chesapeake Bay.

In 2023, the Steinman Foundation and the Richard King Mellon Foundation provided additional funds to purchase analytical equipment that will assist the CWI as they monitor the effectiveness of floodplain-wetland restorations in Lancaster County.

“The broader work is to study the human impact on these floodplains from colonial settlement and the construction of mills and mill dams, and to work together in an interdisciplinary way to find the most sustainable ways to restore them,” said Fodor, geospatial and visual communications coordinator with the CWI.

In practice, that means bringing together collaborators in various fields. Environmental scientists monitor the health and water quality of streams, while sociologists and communications specialists work to engage local communities in the restoration efforts.

“It’s a great team of people to work with, and it’s a great place to continue networking. You really can’t find a better environment than with people who were your mentors and are so eager to see you grow.”

Alice Fodor '23

A key focus of these efforts is the removal of something known as legacy sediment.

“When you put in a dam, over time, there’s sediment that runs off the landscape and piles up behind the dam,” explained Connuck, who works as the initiative’s outreach and communication coordinator. “When you take that dam out, or when it fails, the water doesn’t know where to go, so it cuts a narrow channel through that sediment.”

This can affect water quality and ecosystem health, and creates steep banks that make the stream less accessible and exacerbate erosion, causing further damage to the landscape. 

Removing legacy sediment creates a wider, shallower path for the water, which can mitigate the impacts of flooding. It also allows more trees, shrubs, and grasses to grow nearby, providing a buffer that filters sediments and pollutants from runoff.

“Rewilding is another word we like to use to describe restoration,” Fodor said, “because it’s bringing the landscape back to wild conditions.”

Fodor and Connuck said their day-to-day work varies, but centers around sharing the importance of this work with the communities where it is taking place.

“Restoring historical wetlands is really important. It’s long-lasting and has a lot of ecosystem services like carbon storage, water cooling, and improving biodiversity,” Connuck said.

“The research opportunities for students at F&M are unparalleled. Usually that would be a graduate student up in that tree, but at F&M, all our students have more opportunities.”

Hannah Connuck '23

Sharing the results of research that shows the benefits of restoration projects can help science communicators like Connuck and Fodor explain why these efforts are necessary.

“People see the landscape around them and think it’s natural because it’s what they’re used to,” Fodor said. “It’s important to have the historical context to understand that there was something else that existed before that is healthier and more natural.”

Both Connuck and Fodor said that taking classes with Dorothy Merritts, Harry W. & Mary B. Huffnagle Professor of Geosciences at F&M, put them on the path to their current roles. Merritts is a principal investigator with the CWI, and when a communications role with the initiative opened up during Connuck and Fodor’s senior year, she encouraged them both to apply.

Fodor said the job is an ideal first step in her career. “It’s a great team of people to work with, and it’s a great place to continue networking. You really can’t find a better environment than with people who were your mentors and are so eager to see you grow.”

Connuck and Fodor both credited their F&M experience with helping them develop the skills to thrive after graduation and said they had opportunities as undergraduates that typically aren’t available until graduate school. Fodor was a teaching assistant for Merritts’ geomorphology class, while Connuck spent two summers conducting research on tree canopies in Costa Rica.

“The research opportunities for students at F&M are unparalleled,” Connuck said. “Usually that would be a graduate student up in that tree, but at F&M, all our students have more opportunities.”