Fire Ecology Internship Expands Research Opportunities for Orange County High School Students

Applications are now open for a high school internship providing students with hands-on experience studying the impact of fire on local ecosystems! Irvine Ranch Conservancy (IRC) is partnering with Crystal Cove Conservancy, California State Parks and the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences to offer the Fire Ecology Internship for the 2024-2025 school year. New this year, students and land managers will also study how fire frequency can potentially alter the soil biome and the microbial life that lives within it. 

The 2024-2025 program will run for 13 weeks from October 2024 through May 2025, with a combination of virtual sessions, in-person field days at a variety of open spaces throughout Orange County, and lab work at the Microbial Evolutionary Ecology Lab at UCI. Applications are open now through September 22 for the academic school year. 

Interns, ranging from sophomores to seniors, have diverse career aspirations in sustainability, climate change, pre-med and resource management. Interns will gain valuable experience working in restoration, fire ecology and land management, helping local land managers address real-life conservation challenges. This internship specifically targets high school students from underrepresented backgrounds in the STEM field.

During last year’s 2023-2024 program, interns collected data at sites located in Crystal Cove State Park, and OC Parks’ Limestone, Weir and Gypsum Canyons to study the impact fire has on Orange County’s important native species. This year, interns will be assigned two different tracks – one focusing on the habitat quality of the prickly pear cactus and cactus wren after fire occurrence, and the second analyzing how fire frequency can cause changes in soil biome diversity. These focuses will give interns the chance to experience ecological field research with IRC, Crystal Cove Conservancy and California State Parks. Plus, the interns will gain traditional lab research with technicians at UCI.

Now in its fifth year, the Fire Ecology Internship aims to build upon research conducted by previous year’s interns. The goal is to create a comprehensive database for tracking changes over time to be able to measure the impacts of past and future fires.

If you know someone who would be interested in this opportunity, applications are open now through Sunday, September 22. To apply, or learn more about this hands-on and exciting program, please visit crystalcove.org/fire-ecology-high-school-internship.