Student Stories: Transforming Landscapes, Transforming Futures

For many undergraduate students in the Anthropology Department at UCSC, internships provide a wonderful opportunity to explore new interests and engage with anthropology outside of the classroom setting. As part of this year’s Chronicle, I had the chance to sit down and talk virtually with Kahena Wilhite. 

Kahena Wilhite (she/her) is a graduating senior interested in environmental anthropology. Last summer, she completed a summer internship at Fort Ord Natural Reserve working as a Research Support Intern and Steward. As she describes in our interview, she received funding for this internship through the Transforming Futures: Summer Internship Scholarship Program. Today, she continues to work at Fort Ord throughout the year. She plans to attend the University of Oslo for the Master's Programme in Development, Environment, and Cultural Change. 

Please describe your internship. Where was it located, and when did you complete it? What kind of work did you perform during your time there?

I did this internship through Transforming Futures, which is a program for EOP (Educational Opportunity Program) students. You can choose an organization in the area or honestly, I think it's anywhere in the world. You speak to the supervisors, ask them if you can do an internship with them, and Transforming Futures funds it.

I was interested in working in Fort Ord because I wanted more experience in conservation work. I had worked on trail crews before so I had experience working outside, but I had never done anything that's a bit more research-focused and academically-focused. It was really beneficial for me because I got to work on site restoration for indigenous species in the area. I worked with other students that are ecology and evolutionary biology, marine biology, or other "science" related majors.

I also learned about different tools, different technologies that you can use for restoration work. I learned to use GIS (Geographic Information System), and I learned to use a Trimble (a handheld GPS/GIS tracking device). And I did a lot of this work independently, which was also really beneficial for me in gaining more confidence with this kind of work and knowing that it's something I would enjoy in the future.

It sounds like you were doing a lot of different things, a lot of different kinds of work. If you could describe it in a sentence, how would you describe your internship?

Saving endangered species and showing the community why this is important.

What surprised you about your internship experience?

In terms of research, I think what I was expecting is that research is always the most accurate 100%. At the same time, what surprised me is that it is a very long and strenuous process to just monitor a single plant and how they survive. 

How has this internship experience impacted academic and professional goals? You mentioned learning GIS and the Master's programme. What other skills, newfound interests, life lessons have you learned that you're taking with you?

In my freshman and sophomore year, I was taking more ethnic studies related courses and a lot of cultural courses. This is something that I'm still really passionate about, but then I took an environmental anthropology course, and I found that there's actually a lot of overlap between the two. I think what I wanted out of the internship was on the other side of the spectrum from cultural anthropology; you go about working with the environment in a more "science-y" way. 

I think the internship showed me that I'm not necessarily interested in conservation work as much, although it's something that I loved doing there. I think it was more the applicable skills that I'm taking away, like understanding how one specific environment is going to be entirely different from working in another environment when it comes to working with climate change or working with Indigenous representatives or Indigenous knowledge. I think that was a really important takeaway for me. It also clarified in my mind that I do want to work outside and that I want to keep finding those overlaps between environmental studies and anthropology so that's why I'm going into my master's program now. 

What advice do you have for anthropology students at UCSC who are interested in completing an internship?

I would just say to imagine the ideal scenario – keeping an open mind and knowing that it isn't easy to get an internship, but just really thinking and imagining what it is that you want out of your education.

Sometimes school can’t really fulfill every single part of what you're interested in. Not setting too many limitations for yourself because people are going to take you in, give you advice, and really appreciate the work you're doing for them, especially if you're an intern and working for free. There's a lot of funding available and to look for that funding to try to get paid through the school.

Is there anything else you want to add to this Chronicle? Anything that I haven't asked that you want to discuss?

I actually did another internship that wasn't necessarily as influential because it was for a shorter period of time, but it was through the Building Belonging Program and it focused on dendrochronology. I would encourage people to just do as many internships as they can. 

I've bounced around different realms within environmental studies. I feel like it can't hurt, even if it's not exactly what it is that you want to do for your life. If it's something that excites you, just go for it because one thing will lead to the next. Put yourself out there and share with people what you're interested in, and be open minded.

Interview by Donovan Sayegh-McFann. Donovan is a third year undergraduate student and a Peer Advisor in the Anthropology Department.