HBRC Hosts US Agriculture and Environment students

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council is providing a once in a lifetime experience for US students studying agriculture and the environment.

Six United States students participating in the Massey University Agriculture and Environment National Expedition and Internship began their internships at Hawke’s Bay Regional Council on 12 June. The other 21 students in the Massey University programme have been placed at wineries, fruit companies, Fish & Game, DOC, and other businesses in the Hawke’s Bay region.

The students arrived in Queenstown on 29 May to begin a two-week expedition through both islands to learn about agriculture and environment. They visited farms, wineries, research and conservation centres, and various other sites. The students then arrived in Hawke’s Bay on 10 June to begin their four-week internships.

The six interns at HBRC are involved with interesting and diverse projects. Sam Shimota, Christian Hernandez, Deanna Hellinger, and Alyssa Navarrete are with the water quality and ecology team. Their projects include working with fish barriers and riparian plantings.

“I’m excited about getting real world experience about how an environmentally friendly organization can work with the resources that they have to be more sustainable. The process of doing this internship confirms that this is what I want to do for my career,” says Christian, environmental science major with a concentration on ecological restoration from Humboldt University in California.

The two other interns, Janiece Pigg and Hannah Fisher, are working on various communications projects with the land management and communications teams. Janiece and Hannah have already worked with Enviroschools and science briefs. Their next projects include media for winter cropping, infographics, farmer highlights, and reviewing websites.

The students are hoping to bring back knowledge and perspective back to the US. “I think being in a different country proposes different issues which we in the US haven’t thought about. I think in New Zealand issues are more prominent because of its size. This experience will help me bring a new perspective back home and to my university”, says Janiece Pigg, an Agriculture Education Leadership Communication major at Mississippi State University.

The interns will finish on 5 July followed by a presentation of their work on 7 July before heading home or continuing their adventures across New Zealand.

Image details: From left- Hannah Fisher (Iowa State University), Samantha 'Sam' Shimota (Iowa State University), Janiece Pigg (Mississipi State University), Christian Hernandez (Humboldt State University), Deanna Hellinger (Western Carolina University), Alyssa Navarrete (Schreiner University).

20 June 2017

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