Environmental Science Research

A Hale Scholar benefiting from one of the two scholarships Rob Hale set up with his 2015 gift to the College, Aubry Shaw ’22 is majoring in environmental science and minoring in Hispanic studies while pursuing the Social Justice and Sustainability Integrative Pathway. As a sophomore, Aubry served as a student advisor for Shot in Spanish, a first-year seminar on film, and was also elected to the College’s Honor Council, which formally adjudicates alleged violations of the Connecticut College Honor Code and Student Code of Conduct. Aubry also works as a baker for Coffee Grounds, a student-run campus cafe.

In the summer of 2021, she was one of three students who traveled to Costa Rica with Maria Rosa, the George and Carol Milne Assistant Professor of Biology, National Parks Trust, as a research intern. With support from a prestigious Bessel Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany, Aubry learned about the “blue economy” (a sustainable development approach to coastal resources), island biogeography, and coastal restoration techniques while acquiring SCUBA diving skills. She remained in Costa Rica for the fall 2021 semester where she studied in the  School for Field Studies’ Sustainable Development Studies program.

Aubry says, “Since I was very young, I have always had to work very hard to pay for things so I can truly appreciate them and their value. I have always been a hard worker, but I was still worried I wouldn’t be able to attend college. My financial aid package has been such a relief for me, and I have tried to work my hardest in college to reflect my appreciation for this. I am so grateful for my scholarship.”