What are you up to now?

Alana Belcon
REU '03

Mentor: Aaron Ellison

Project: Distribution and diversity of bog vegetation at Tom Swamp

Hometown: Arima, Trinidad & Tobago
College and major: Mount Holyoke College, Environmental Studies, class of 2004

What you miss most about the REU program:
The camaraderie between participants. It was awesome being with so many other young people who were all environmentally/ecologically minded.

What you miss least about the REU program:
Working in the bog (Tom Swamp) by myself. I enjoyed my project but it was difficult doing it solo.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
So many things - the people, the beauty of Harvard Forest, the knowledge that if I could do that project by myself then I can do anything.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?:
Yes, several.

Whether your REU experience supported or changed your career plans:
Supported, as I was already an environmental studies major with a GIS focus.

What you're up to now:
I'm currently in grad school at Duke University doing my PhD in tropical climatology with a focus on the South American/Caribbean region.

Want to see more alumni profiles? Check out our Harvard Forest REU alumni blog.