Conservation & Ecological RestorationKatya Jay
2017 The Garden Club of America Fellowship in Ecological Restoration

Katya Jay is a PhD candidate in the Integrative Biology Department at Oregon State University in Corvallis. She studies relationships between beach grasses, dune geomorphology, and extreme storm events. She is investigating the recovery of coastal dune systems following Hurricane Matthew by comparing natural and managed dunes along the Outer Banks of North Carolina in Cape Lookout National Seashore. The dunes of the barrier island provide the coastline with critical protection against flooding and storm surges for nearby communities. She will conduct field surveys every four months over the next two years, and the results of her research will be used to inform coastal ecosystem management about dune restoration techniques.
The Garden Club of America Fellowship in Ecological Restoration
The Garden Club of America (the GCA) offers an annual Fellowship in Ecological Restoration. Established in 2000 with funds from the John B. Young Charitable Trust as well as GCA members and clubs, the fellowship’s goal is to support research that will advance knowledge and increase the number of scientists in the important field of ecological restoration, the active healing of the land. The $8,000 grant is awarded annually to exceptional graduate students to support specialized study in ecological restoration at an accredited U.S. university. Preference will be given to projects that include field research conducted in the United States. A panel of experts associated with the University of Wisconsin–Madison Arboretum reviews the applications and makes recommendations to the GCA Scholarship Committee.
For the purposes of this scholarship, The Garden Club of America agrees to the definition of ecological restoration as stated by the Society of Ecological Restoration (SER).