Lauren Coca

Name: Lauren Coca

Hometown: Mechanicsburg, PA

Anticipated graduation: 2023

Major: Environmental and Spatial Sciences

Minor:  Environmental Hazards and Emergency Management (EHEM)

Internships/Research/Projects:

• Co-op with the Student Success Network to manage the Sustainable Garden Plots
  • Worked as a garden assistant alongside the AmeriCorps Vista, Alan Snavely
  • Harvested 85lbs of food to donate to the HUB’s Campus Cupboard
• Published article in the 2022 issue of Engage for Change
  • Article: Millersville University Saves the Bees: Certified Bee Campus
  • https://blogs.millersville.edu/engageforchangejournal/ (pages 20-25)
• Working with Dr. Geiger in the Geography Department to create acomprehensive map of the Millersville University campus in ArcGIS pro(In progress)
• Working with Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) on their Precious Plastics Project
  • Collecting plastic from our own waste and the Millersville community
  • Shredding the plastic
  • Melting the plastic
  • Extruding the plastic into a mold to be upcycled into a new product Presenting at Made in Millersville

Inspirations (for major, research, internship):

The inspirations for my major have stemmed from my love of science and passion for environmental advocacy. Sustainability is the key to keeping the world in balance, and I want to dedicate my career to doing just that. Last summer, there was an opportunity to work in the Sustainable Garden Plots on campus, and I was able to work with the Student Success Network to turn it into a co-op for credit. It was an incredibly eye-opening experience, as I combined my love for community service and passion for sustainability into one project. We were able to use integrated pest management techniques instead of using pesticides, as well as a green mulch or clover to put Nitrogen right into the soil. I loved the experience so much I decided to take Botany with Dr. Hardy this semester!

Another inspiration for my work is the long-term issue of climate change. Creating awareness of the problems and, most importantly, the solutions are essential in fighting against climate change. These issues are featured in my recently published article for the Engage for Change journal, where I discuss how climate change and anthropogenic causes have been causing an overall decline in bee populations, the single-most-important pollinator on the planet. It mentions how Millersville has recently become a Certified Bee Campus, how they got to that status, and how other campuses and cities can become certified as well.

Highlights (from courses/internship/research): 

Some of my favorite highlights from my co-opin the Sustainable Garden Plots were harvesting the crops we had planted so late in the season. We were able to get so much corn in such a little amount of time, as well as raspberries and strawberries. With all of our work, we donated 85lbs of food to the HUB’s Campus Cupboard! In addition to the season’s success, it was very rewarding for Millersville to write an article on our work, and for FOX 43 News to do a news story on the garden. One of the most remarkable experiences I have had in the classroom happened very recently! In Dr. Hardy’s Concepts of Botany class, we recently had the banana tree demonstration where he cut down and brought a fully grown banana tree into the lecture hall. It was so refreshing to have this experience in person, as he handed out different parts of the tree to the classroom, like giant banana leaves and unripe bananas! Of course, he was able to connect it all back to what we were studying, but nothing is cooler than seeing your teacher bring in a tree twice as tall as him, and then cut it down with a machete in front of the whole class.

Takeaway (from courses/internship/research):

A big takeaway from my courses and projects is that there are many ways to approach a problem. In sustainability, there are three different pillars, economic, environmental, and social. If you focus on one pillar, like economics, the other two pillars, social and environmental, will often suffer. If you can include all perspectives, you can help solve a problem more effectively. A great example of this is my current work in the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) Precious Plastics Project. While many of the people in the organization are coming at the plastics project from the engineering side, I can help with the environmental science side, and others can help with the social media side. Altogether, the project becomes a little more fluid, and everyone can bring their strengths to the table.

Advice (for incoming freshman in your shoes):