Carothers Environmental Scholar on the Benefits of GCA-Funded Field Research

September 10, 2024

Garden Club of America Funds Wetlands Biodiversity Research
Sid Hancock

Zoë Riggs, 2024 Mary T. Carothers Summer Environmental Studies Scholar, credits GCA-supported research in Loreto, Peru, for helping build “a more rounded, empathetic, and critically thinking young professional.” Riggs, an undergraduate in Environmental Sciences at Montreat College, conducted field research this summer that included surveys of wetland plant communities and herpetofaunal - reptiles and amphibians of a particular region or habitat - communities. “Exposure to a variety of ecosystems and kinds of organisms,” explains Riggs, “allows an ecologist to expand their frame of reference when asking questions about the natural world.” 

While comparing the herpetofaunal diversity of wetlands to diversity and abundance of aquatic vegetation present in the wetlands, Riggs observed rare conifers, fish surviving in puddles formed by boot prints, and frogs evolved to carry their unborn young in the skin of their backs. Grateful for the cultural, historical, and scientific lessons gleaned from the field studies, Riggs says, “The opportunity to experience different cultural practices is an invaluable experience for anyone, especially undergraduates.”

“The funding provided by the GCA through the Mary T. Carothers Scholarship allowed me to study and travel in Peru, giving me the ability to expand my knowledge of both aquatic ecology and Peruvian culture,” says Riggs. “Thank you for investing in my future!".  

Riggs is one of 100 recipients in the GCA’s Class of 2024 Scholars. In 2024, a record $459,000 was awarded to young people in fields including botany, landscape architecture, horticulture, and urban forestry. Applications for the 2025 GCA Scholarship season open on September 1. 

Applications for the Mary T. Carothers Scholarship as well as other GCA scholarships are due February 5th, 2025 and are accessible through the GCA website:  https://www.gcamerica.org/scholarships.

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