Personal interviews to gain insights into the views of the community

Personal interviews to gain insights into the views of the community

introduce

How can we best connect and share the value of the Hudson River and broader environmental resources with our communities in a culturally meaningful way?This is a major mission for student participation The next generation of Hudson River educators at Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory. They dedicated their summer vacation to an immersive unique online and on-site program to learn about the diverse and vibrant Hudson River ecosystem. After in-depth understanding of Hudson River science through field investigations, students will develop different educational materials that they can share with friends, family, and the community to establish a stronger management of the Hudson River. However, in order to develop culturally relevant information output, students first need to learn from their community their ideas and their existing relationship with Hudson. The students interviewed multi-generational community members from Rockland County, New York, to gather personalized views about the Hudson River and learn more about the people in their communities.

Below one of our students summarized her experience interviewing community members this summer.

Interviews are listening and learning from personal stories

Written by student Kaitlyn Canivel (Kaitlyn Canivel) Albertus Magnus High School

In science, we learn that it is always good to ask questions. Why is the sky blue? Why is the earth warming every year now? Why do people in our community think that the water of the Hudson River is polluted and even touching it may be dangerous? Many people agree that the best way to learn is to seek answers by asking questions, and there is a better way to learn from our community to understand their perspectives than asking questions from those around us.

The next generation of interns explored the Hudson River and involved local residents in their experience.

In order to discover the best way to reach the community through meaningful educational resources about the Hudson River, the next generation of Hudson River educators from Lamont-Doherty (Next generation) Interviewed people around me. From friends to family, to neighbors and kind strangers, Next generation The interns asked about their connections and views on the Hudson River. Questions raised by high school students respond to questions raised by interviewees:

• Connection with nature
• Perspective of the Hudson River
• Use of the river
• Connect with the community
• Commitment to environmental management

Through these interviews, interns can develop a meaningful way to educate their family, friends, and community about the Hudson River. Although surveys may limit individuals to “yes” or “no” answers, interviews allow people to speak out and defend their opinions. Through this method of data collection, the dialogue itself provides space for candid views, often introducing new perspectives to interviewers, allowing them to consider new ways of looking at specific issues or topics. This method can also establish emotional and thoughtful connections with others by discussing and sharing topics they may never have the opportunity to participate in. Finally, interviews help determine trends in the community.

Lamont Next Gen interns collected small sediment cores from the Hudson River to study river processes and history. They learned that the color of the Hudson River is not only derived from sediments, but also from nutrients, plankton and other important organic matter.

From the interviews I personally conducted, I learned that people’s views on the Hudson River depend largely on their growth experience. Hobbies, professions, and education seem to make people in different communities have different views of Hekou. Many people have a long-term misunderstanding about the cleanliness of the Hudson River, thinking that its color proves that it is unhealthy, but its color comes from natural sources and river processes. The Hudson River is home to more than 200 species of fish! In short, the Hudson River is an amazing body of water, not as polluted as people believe!

An artist I interviewed often talked about the beautiful appearance and unfortunate green-brown of Hudson water. Her interview focused on the power of the river, but due to the color of the water, she thought it was polluted. Two lovely kids I met on the seashore told me that they went to France, Italy and their home in the Dominican Republic. They emphasized the clear difference between the clear waters of the Italian canals and the Caribbean Sea and the brown-green color of the Hudson River. Another woman I spoke to mentioned her job as a logistics coordinator and said that the Hudson River is most likely to be contaminated by ships and ships crossing the river. As a trader, it makes sense for her to focus on the trade and transportation aspects of the Hudson River and how this affects her point of view.There is another person, a person from northern Saratoga, who witnessed heated discussions about PCBs or PCBs in the Hudson River and debates on dredging in the upper reaches of the river, which exacerbated his misunderstanding, namely The Hudson River is the most certain no A place where you can swim.

Those who live on the waterfront have very different views from those who live on the waterfront. Many seaside residents swim in the Hudson River and talk about the fascinating creatures they see in the river. Seeing seals, sea turtles and a large number of fish, they can hardly say that the Hudson River is poisonous and polluted. These deviations between individuals tell us that it is the little things in life that make our experience unique, and it is very important to share our stories through interviews and understand the background of opinions and opinions.

Gio Rodriguez, the founder of Hudson Valley Watersports, is dedicated to connecting people with water by bringing people to the river, thereby attracting people to participate in outdoor activities. He worked with the Haverstraw Youth Center to clean up the rubbish on the Haverstraat Merlin Park beach, and then took the young people to the river to experience the Hudson River for themselves.

I also learned through this process that almost everyone in our community truly loves nature and wants to protect it. Everyone participated in outdoor activities such as fishing, cycling, walking, boating or swimming in the Hudson River, and expressed their personal dedication to protecting nature through recycling and reducing the negative impact of garbage. Some local residents of Haverstraw have close ties with the Hudson River, and they practice environmental management by picking up rubbish.

A Haverstraw resident told me his own way to help the environment. “Before we go to the park or play by the river, my son and I always clean the beach or playground. I really don’t like littering, nor do I like littering because it affects the environment, you know Is it? I just think that as a person living here, this is not the right way to do it.”

Interviewees strongly agree that it is important to involve people in the environment through projects because we protect what we know and see. They say that the best way to do this is to motivate people to actually interact with it.

Before this summer, Arianna and Caitlin had never touched or visited the Hudson River. They all said that their family and friends warned them to be careful of the Hudson River because they thought the Hudson River was polluted and even poisonous! Arianna and Kaitlyn refused to listen to this, but embraced the beauty and rich biodiversity of the Hudson River!

Most interviewees don’t know much about organizations that focus on researching, protecting or educating the Hudson River, such as Riverkeeper, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, and the New York Department of Environmental Protection’s Hudson River Estuary Program, or Lamont-Doherty . This is an important area of ​​education that we learned from interviews. We also learned that an effective way to connect more people to Hudson is to use hands-on experience. By using this method, many people will be able to see the good life living in the Hudson River and appreciate its complex system, thus giving them greater motivation to protect this body of water.

This is true for many people who interact with the Hudson River and see the biodiversity and life beneath the surface. An exciting moment was when we saw a young boy from Haverstrom establish a connection with the Florida turtle we caught on the waterfront of Emmelin Park. During our interview, I saw that he found a bag of potato chips on the beach, and he hurried to the garbage dump to dispose of it properly. “We don’t litter,” he said, “because it is harmful to animals.”

The little boy from Haverstraw. In his eyes, you can see his awe of the soft-shelled turtle we caught with the net, and how he carried it in such a religious way, trying to make sure it won’t be harmed and put it close to the water .

I can personally say that this lesson also applies to me. After seeing the life of the Hudson River for the first time through this project, my enthusiasm for protecting the environment has become even stronger. After analyzing the interview data I conducted, I found that participating in nature and truly immersed in practical education can instill motivation to protect the lives and environment around us. We realize that our life is not too different from what we see every day: trees that like to bask in the sun, fish that constantly swim and move in our lives, and animals that protect their young. Although we all have different stories, we are all connected by our love of nature. Together, we can help create a better earth where all life can be inhabited.

From Lamont’s next generation Planning, I learned how valuable interviews are as a way of gathering information. By understanding the background of everyone’s view of the Hudson River, it allows me to observe the small and important details that play a major role in people’s view of the water body-if I use surveys or surveys, I can’t see these details. of. Different ways. These conversations also made me feel more connected with the people around me and listened to their stories. The interview made me realize that everyone’s views on the Hudson River, whether positive or negative, are affected by their livelihoods. However, although we all live different lives, we are all connected by our love of nature. Together we can help create a better Hudson, and we can help all lives live on a better earth. .

This summer, our team was lucky to have Charity Dikson as one of our undergraduate tutors. Growing up and living in Havertsraw, she had her own views on the local area and was able to personally share her community.

in conclusion:

this Next Generation Hudson River Educator Program Not only does it provide students with a unique and immersive learning experience, but it also provides them with a more comprehensive understanding and connection with Rockland County residents. Through interviews, they gained knowledge and skills in public speaking and community outreach. Recording community views and experiences can then be used as a strategy for creating solutions to educate community members about the Hudson River Basin, connect communities together, and bring people to the local waterfront.

— Introduction and conclusions are written by Charity Dikson, undergraduates are close to peer tutors From Rockland Protection and Service Team.

Check out other blogs from the Next Generation Project “Inequality to be explored by the next generation of Hudson River educators”

Funders include.

Lamont’s Next Generation Hudson River Educator Program is a program funded by the U.S. government New York State DecemberWith the support of the New York Foundation, Henry L. and Grace Doherty Charitable Foundation, Inc. And additional student support NSF includes program. For the six weeks of this summer, the program will be in a mixed format, with 2 days a week (with teams in Pyrmont and Haverstra New York) and 3 virtual days. Eight high school students had an in-depth experience with two members of the Rockland Conservation Corps and Lamont’s Laurel Zaima and Maggie Trin.