Project WHIRL (Protectors of the Watershed in the Indian River Lakes)
Project WHIRL is a volunteer program established by the Indian River Lakes Conservancy (IRLC) (offering 6-12 volunteer and high school credit tracks) in 2019, that works to train tomorrow's watershed leaders. In summer 2021, I received a grant, along with collaborators at Clarkson, to run a the first ever high school track program, where students collected field data and used predictive modeling to determine the efficacy of biocontrol at reducing the invasive aquatic plant Eurasian watermilfoil.
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Team members: Diana White (Clarkson Mathematics), Michael Twiss (Clarkson Biology), Katie Kavanagh (Clarkson's STEM Ed Institute and Mathematics), Lisa Legault (Clarkson Psychology), Andrea Inserra (Indian River Lakes High School), and the IRLC.
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WHIRL students working on predictive modeling!
WHIRL students and undergraduate mentors out in the field collecting model data
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Lead teacher Andrea Inserra with WHIRL students, SUNY ESF faculty and grad students learning about
seining.
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