The Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU): Environmental Biology for Pacific Islanders Program is administered by the Pacific Biosciences Research Center in the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawaii Manoa.
This REU Site award to University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, located in Honolulu, HI, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2020- 2022. Field work for student research projects will occur in the ahupua‘a of Kailua, O‘ahu. Recruitment in this program focuses on native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders from Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Sāmoa, Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Students will learn to conduct biological research that confronts challenges facing Pacific Island communities, and return this knowledge to their home islands.
The overarching goal of this REU-SITE program is to develop a cohort of culturally-connected Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders who are well-trained in the conduct of scientific research, the engagement of indigenous communities throughout the scientific process, and in disciplines of greatest importance to their islands and their future, including ecology, environmental biology, and conservation science. The faculty mentors for this REU-Site are spread across several schools and institutes at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, including:
- Center of Microbiome Analysis through Island Knowledge and Investigation
- Center of Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education
- Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology
- Economic Research Organization
- School of Life Sciences
- Departments of Natural Resource and Environmental Management and Tropical Plants and Soil Sciences
Student projects will focus on using systems biology research to solve issues identified by the community within Kailua, work on fishery science, sustainable agriculture systems, ecological restoration, invasive species science and management, and disease ecology.
Student participants will engage community members, stakeholders, and landowners as they conduct cutting-edge science. They will also be trained in research ethics and responsible conduct, lab safety procedures, scientific writing and publication, and graduate school application procedures.