Elena
Marquez
Environmental
Science
elenamarquez
.
research
@
gmail
.
com
My
first
encounter
with
environmental
science
was
not
in
a
classroom
but
along
the
banks
of
the
Los
Angeles
River
,
where
I
spent
weekends
with
my
grandfather
collecting
water
samples
to
monitor
nitrate
levels
for
a
local
community
group
.
I
was
twelve
,
holding
a
plastic
vial
to
the
light
,
and
I
remember
wondering
why
the
water
ran
brown
after
heavy
rains
while
the
city
continued
to
expand
upstream
.
That
question
has
guided
every
academic
and
professional
decision
I
have
made
since
then
.
I
pursued
a
Bachelor
of
Science
in
Environmental
Biology
at
the
University
of
California
,
Riverside
,
graduating
with
honors
in
June
2024.
My
coursework
built
a
strong
quantitative
foundation
in
ecology
,
organic
chemistry
,
and
geographic
information
systems
.
However
,
it
was
my
upper
division
courses
in
restoration
ecology
and
environmental
toxicology
that
transformed
my
broad
interests
into
focused
research
questions
.
In
Dr
.
Samuel
Okonkwo
'
s
lab
,
I
studied
the
bioaccumulation
of
heavy
metals
in
aquatic
insects
along
urban
stream
corridors
.
Over
eighteen
months
,
I
collected
macroinvertebrate
specimens
from
twelve
sites
,
processed
tissue
samples
using
inductively
coupled
plasma
mass
spectrometry
,
and
analyzed
spatial
patterns
using
R
and
ArcGIS
Pro
.
Our
findings
suggested
that
legacy
contamination
from
historical
industrial
sites
continues
to
alter
food
web
dynamics
even
after
surface
remediation
appears
complete
.
This
work
resulted
in
a
coauthored
publication
in
Environmental
Toxicology
and
Chemistry
and
a
presentation
at
the
Society
for
Freshwater
Science
annual
meeting
in
2023.
Beyond
the
laboratory
,
I
have
sought
experiences
that
connect
data
to
communities
.
As
an
intern
with
the
Los
Angeles
County
Department
of
Public
Health
,
I
assisted
in
translating
groundwater
monitoring
reports
into
Spanish
and
English
summaries
for
residents
in
unincorporated
areas
near
Superfund
sites
.
I
learned
that
effective
environmental
science
requires
not
only
rigorous
sampling
protocols
but
also
transparency
and
cultural
competence
when
communicating
risk
.
This
experience
solidified
my
commitment
to
environmental
justice
and
my
belief
that
technical
expertise
must
serve
public
accountability
.
My
immediate
research
interests
center
on
urban
watershed
resilience
and
the
cumulative
impacts
of
legacy
pollution
on
ecosystem
services
in
disinvested
neighborhoods
.
I
am
particularly
interested
in
using
remote
sensing
and
machine
learning
approaches
to
model
how
green
infrastructure
interventions
,
such
as
bioswales
and
restored
riparian
buffers
,
affect
water
quality
at
the
neighborhood
scale
.
I
am
also
deeply
committed
to
participatory
research
methodologies
that
incorporate
community
knowledge
and
prioritize
local
priorities
alongside
academic
hypotheses
.
Your
program
appeals
to
me
because
of
its
explicit
integration
of
natural
sciences
with
policy
application
and
community
engagement
.
The
work
of
Dr
.
Aisha
Johnson
on
climate
adaptation
in
urban
heat
islands
aligns
closely
with
my
interest
in
translating
ecological
data
into
equitable
planning
tools
.
Similarly
,
the
1 / 2
department
'
s
partnership
with
the
Puget
Sound
Stewardship
Coalition
offers
a
model
for
the
kind
of
collaborative
science
I
hope
to
practice
throughout
my
career
.
I
am
eager
to
contribute
to
this
intellectual
community
while
expanding
my
technical
skills
in
spatial
analysis
and
systems
modeling
.
Ultimately
,
I
aim
to
lead
research
that
informs
regional
environmental
policy
while
maintaining
the
trust
of
the
communities
most
affected
by
ecological
degradation
.
Graduate
study
represents
the
essential
next
step
in
developing
the
theoretical
depth
and
methodological
sophistication
required
to
address
these
complex
,
interdisciplinary
challenges
.
I
am
ready
to
bring
my
curiosity
,
my
commitment
to
justice
,
and
my
respect
for
both
data
and
community
knowledge
to
your
program
.
2 / 2
