Heather has created a variety of materials for outreach and education. This page contains examples of written and visual outreach materials. The first example is a link to the Sea Shell Guide to NEC (Northeastern Ecological Corridor) webpage which has a printable PDF of common marine mollusks that can be found in the NEC. This printable quick-identification guide was the result of an independent study project during Heather’s master’s degree coursework where she traveled to northeastern Puerto Rico to help local researchers and land managers evaluate marine molluscan diversity and create educational materials. The second example is a large outdoor sign that Heather created for the 2016 Bioblitz at Rushton Woods Preserve which she organized. The sign was there to show volunteers that they had arrived to the right location. The third example is a short advertisement calling for volunteers for the first bioblitz Heather organized at Rushton Woods Preserve in 2015. This advertisement was sent out to local universities, colleges, science organizations, and posted to relevant list serves. This advertisement resulted in Heather creating a large network of over 50 scientists, researchers, organizations, universities, naturalists, students, hobbyists, and other stakeholders.
Large Outdoor Signage for 2016 Bioblitz at Rushton Woods Preserve
Digital List Serve Advertisement for the 2015 Bioblitz at Rushton Woods Preserve
Heather Kostick (UPenn MES student), along with Lisa Kiziuk (Willistown Conservation Trust), is conducting a bioblitz at the Willistown Conservation Trust’s Rushton Farm located in Willistown, PA (it’s about 40-60 minutes from Philadelphia). A bioblitz is a 24-hour intense surveillance period of an area with the purpose of getting a snapshot of the area’s ecosystem and biodiversity. She is specifically seeking volunteers that have a specialist background or hobby: birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fungi, insects, aquatic life, and plants – preferably knowing the species in the Eastern US. June 5 (7:00-11:00pm) & 6 (sunrise-3:00pm) are dates for the bioblitz. If you’re interested you can email Heather at upennbioblitz@gmail.com with the subject title bioblitz and let her what you specialize in. If you are still interested in helping out, but don’t specialize in anything, email her anyway! Any and all help will be appreciated!
Heather Kostick 