Spring 2022 Capstone Symposium: May 25 & June 1
The Program on the Environment will host the Spring 2022 Capstone Symposium on Wednesday, May 25, online AND on Wednesday, June 1, in person. All are welcome to attend and support students as they present on the culmination of their hard work over three quarters.
The Capstone Course Series is a highlight for many students, and serves to catapult some into their first jobs or even their dream careers. Through internships, research, and social media training, students come out of the experience well equipped to communicate about the problem they sought to solve, and to tie their academic learning with specific research questions.
This event is open to the public, and we encourage students interested in learning about the Capstone, as well as members of the community, to join us. Please also follow the event on Twitter #POEcap.
**Event program can be found here: PDF. Video presentations can be found here: Playlist
**Abstracts and additional information about each project can be found in here: Word/PDF
Spring 2022 Symposium Schedule
DAY 1: Online Poster Symposium (Wednesday, May 25)
4:30 PM – 4:40 PM Welcome & Session Overview
4:40 PM – 4:50 PM Session A Speaker Intros
4:50 PM – 5:50 PM Poster Session A – Natural Science & Restoration; Policy & Regulation
Samuel Akomea (Room #1) – Make Seattle Green Again: Attempts to Restore Forest Health in Magnolia’s Thorndyke Park. Site Partner: Green Seattle Partnership (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Lily Astone (Room #2) – The Impact of Aircraft Pollution: Environmental Health & Justice. Site Partner: King County Medical Society (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Carina Bixby (Room #3) – Monitoring for Future Management: Great Blue Heron Habitat in Discovery Park. Site Partner: Friends of Discovery Park (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Travis Boyle (Room #4) – Increasing Water Demand Forecast Accuracy Through the Inclusion of Weather Data. Site Partner: Seattle Public Utilities (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
To Chang (Room #5) – Protecting Urban Forest: How Visitor Activities Harm a Park’s Natural Spaces. Site Partner: Friends with Lincoln Park (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Jasmine Chau (Room #6) – Urban Green Spaces: Understanding Their Impacts and Effectiveness on Human Well-Being and Health. Site Partner: Homegrown Organics (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Crystal Chen (Room #7) – Decentralization: A Path Toward Wastewater Resiliency in Coastal Cities. Site Partner: King County Wastewater Treatment Division (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Aaron Fisher (Room #8) – Preparing for the Climate of Tomorrow. Site Partner: Green Seattle Partnership (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Paulo Frank (Room #9) – Feeding the Future: Suggestions to Improve Washington’s Regulatory Regime for Shellfish Aquaculture. Site Partner: NOAA, West Coast Region (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Angela Gaither (Room #10) – The Impact of Heat: A Western Redcedar (Thuja Plicata) Case Study. Site Partner: Forest Health Watch / WSU Research and Extension Center in Puyallup (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Jessica Goulet (Room #11) – Mitigating the Inevitable: Challenges With Hazard Mitigation Planning in the Face of Climate Change. Site Partner: King County Office of Emergency Management (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Mary Kennelly (Room #12) – Saving the Steller Sea Lion: How AI Aids Conservation in Alaska. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Zoe Lew (Room #13) – Protecting Children From Wildfire Smoke: Investing in Indoor Air Quality in California Schools. Site Partner: Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research at Stanford Medicine (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Shanze Madhani (Room #14) – The Impact of Climate Change on Abalone: What Can We Do? Site Partner: NOAA Fisheries (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Rachel Neroutsos (Room #15) – Contention in the Conservation of the Western Steller Sea Lion. Site Partner: NOAA, Marine Mammal Lab (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Vanessa Stokel (Room #16) – Swimming Upstream: The Challenges of Science Communication and Salmon Habitat Restoration. Site Partner: Coast Salmon Partnership (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Hanbo Sun (Room #17) – Volunteering and Forest Restoration in a Neighborhood Park Provide Positive Experiences and Wellbeing. Site Partner: Friends of Lincoln Park (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Cole Svec (Room #18) – Observing Response of Halibut to Fishing Gear. Site Partner: NOAA Fisheries (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
April Tea (Room #19) – Getting Our Bearings: Best Methods for Monitoring Polar Bear Populations. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Lucy Zhu (Room #20) – Clams & Shrimp & Whales, Oh My! Utilizing Invasive Varnish Clams in Puget Sound. Site Partner: NOAA, West Coast Region (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
5:50 PM – 6:00 PM BREAK
6:00 PM – 6:05 PM Session B Overview
6:05 PM – 6:15 PM Session B Speaker Intros
6:15 PM – 7:15 PM Poster Session B – Agriculture & Food Systems; Business & Sustainability; Education & Outreach
Madeleine Ambrose (Room #1) – Application Based Learning in Stem: Implementing Environmental Health Learning Tools in a Physiology Lab Course. Site Partner: (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Heather Boyce (Room #2) – Sustainability Education at the University of Washington. Site Partner: UW Sustainability (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Hannah Christofferson (Room #3) – Can Renewable Energy and the Fashion Industry Go Hand-In-Hand? Experiences From Nordstrom. Site Partner: Nordstrom, Inc (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Vy Chung (Room #4) – Intertwining Gaming Aspects With Environmental Learning. Site Partner: (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Justice Correa-West (Room #5) – Pest and Disease Management of Urban Fruit Trees: How to Manage Your Backyard Fruit Trees. Site Partner: City Fruit (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Hongze Deng (Room #6) – The Impact of Urban Green Spaces on People and the Environment. Site Partner: City Fruit (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Max Hagler (Room #7) – TITLE TBD. Site Partner: Homegrown Organics (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Mollie Hetlage (Room #8) – Energize! Heat Pump Program: Addressing Barriers Regarding Renewable Energy. Site Partner: King County Permitting Division (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Katie Jerauld (Room #9) – Eco-Anxiety: How Do We Cope With Environmental Crises? Site Partner: (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Peter Johnson (Room #10) – Food Forests for the Future. Site Partner: (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Nawon Kim (Room #11) – Is It Time to Say Goodbye to Your Gas Stove?: Barriers to and Recommendations for Cooking Method Conversion. Site Partner: Office of King County Executive Dow Constantine (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Jade Kuo (Room #12) – Becoming Rainwise: What Motivates People to Manage Their Stormwater? Site Partner: Sustainable Ballard (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Siobhan Moreno (Room #13) – Mind the Gap: How to Connect Scientists and Stakeholders Through Climate Communication. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Ian Murphy (Room #14) – Growing Plants for Growing Students: How Experiential Learning in Conservatories Can Support Student Learning. Site Partner: (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Camila Nakashima (Room #15) – “Sustainable” Development? Creating an Equitable and Just Society Through Capital Project Development. Site Partner: King County Solid Waste Division (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Maddie Rutter (Room #16) – Citizen Science: Best Practices for Connecting With the More-Than-Human World. Site Partner: Stillwaters Environmental Center (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Aly Stobie (Room #17) – I Like That! How Social Media Impacts Your Views of the Environment. Site Partner: Cedar Grove (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Riley Wilmart (Room #18) – Urban Farming and Food Justice: How Urban Food Stewardship Enhances Community Aid and Access to Culturally Relevant Foods. Site Partner: City Fruit (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Ian Wyborski (Room #19) – From Lawn to Garden: Transforming Landscapes and Perspectives. Site Partner: CultivateTheTown (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Ruisi Xu (Room #20) – Sustainability Approaches in Higher-Level Education: Sustainability Curriculum in the University of Washington. Site Partner: UW Sustainability (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
Elizabeth Zajaczkowski (Room #21) – Building a Bridge: Bringing Cultural Relevance to Government-Run Environmental Engagement Programs in Alaska. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Poster PDF) (Video)
7:15 PM – 7:30 PM Closing
DAY 2: Oral Presentation Symposium & Celebration (Wednesday, June 1)
5:00 PM – 5:10 PM Welcome & Housekeeping
5:10 PM – 5:40 PM Poster Highlights** & Refreshments
5:40 PM – 5:50 PM BREAK
5:50 PM – 5:55 PM Session Introduction
5:55 PM Leander Van de Fen – Electrofishing Effects on Endangered Fish Species. Site Partner: NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division (Summary) (Video)
6:05 PM Samantha Zink – Birds as Indicators of Habitat Quality in the Face of Climate Change. Site Partner: Washington Department of Natural Resources. (Summary) (Video)
6:15 PM Rachel Luther – Combining Ecological Forestry and Indigenous Knowledges to Adapt Forestry Techniques to a Changing PNW Climate. Site Partner: Northwest Natural Resource Group (Summary) (Video)
6:25 PM Lyndsay Felthoven – It’s Getting Hot in Here: The Relationship Between Climate Change, Environmental Health Disparities, and Seattle Street Trees. Site Partner: Forest Health Watch / WSU Research and Extension Center in Puyallup (Summary) (Video)
6:35 PM Anya Gavrylko – Environmental Justice in Seattle: Practices to Increase Access to Green Space in Historically Underinvested Neighborhoods Without Causing Gentrification and Displacement. Site Partner: Lake City Collective (Summary) (Video)
6:45 PM Emma Radisch – Online Learning: Best Practices for Environmental Science Webinars With Alaska Native Communities. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Video)
6:55 PM Victoria Harmon – How Building Relationships Between and Among Scientists and Policymakers Can Streamline Environmental Policy. Site Partner: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center (Summary) (Video)
7:05 PM Shae Holmes – Back the Pac: Sustainability Views Among Student Athletes and Non-athletes. Site Partner: University of Washington (Summary) (Video)
7:15 PM Kailin Spencer – Small Business Communities: Overcoming Sustainability Obstacles Together. Site Partner: Enweave (Summary) (Video)
7:25 PM – 7:30 PM Symposium ends & celebration continues in Lobby/Lawn
**Note: the Judges will choose 10 posters from Day 1, which will be printed out and displayed during Day 2. Those poster authors will be invited to present their posters during the reception.