This may be my last update with you all it, but it does not mean the end of the line for my work and project. This fellowship while I wish could last longer, comes to an end in July this year and I can’t help but say this has been both enlightening, informative, and an incredible experience. Just thinking that we were brought almost a year ago and knowing how much I’ve learned, done, and plan to do is both daunting and reassuring.  Much of this growth both personally and professionally, have in large part been due to the mentors and managers support during this program. Moving through the first few phases of implementing the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) framework and understanding the local species, habitats, and conditions to understanding how changes in the climate regime will have an impact has been a large part of the work, and the informative part.  Coalescing all the data and information from the biological and environmental, to the climate data, and management capacity/needs necessary to assess and address vulnerability to climate change has really stretched out the concept of being interdisciplinary. There’s still more work to be done of course, as we are in the midst of phase 3 of implementing the RAD framework for adapting to climate change at our individual stations, and phase 4 is yet to start.

It’s only 9 months or half the time of the total fellowship left, but time flies when you’re busy, and it’s been quite the busy summer. It has now turned to the warm days and breezy nights of fall here in the low country of South Carolina, heralded by the calls of the migrating ducks and geese. Throughout the season I’ve had the opportunity to do a variety of things from meeting experts, going to conferences and more field work of course. I was even able to take some time off to recharge and visit some friends in Alaska.  Discovering the array of positions and who does what or how someone’s work fits with others can be stunning to say the least with so many programs out there and groups working together to support them. It’s also relieving in that there is a sense of willingness to collaborate, and I’m glad that there are others to lean on when it comes to any obstacles in our work.

I was able to really get a feel for the effort it takes to keep projects and programs going while at a conference focused on aquatic resources and hydrology, and in the field work I’ve been involved with. At the conference, experts from hydrology and engineering to specific species experts all had an interest in or are affected by aquatic resources and seeing how they come together to address those resource concerns was eye opening. In the field I’ve been able to meet with experts from other agencies like the state department of natural resources, or the federal agencies like Ecological Services or U.S. Geological Survey whose goals maybe slightly different from the Fish and Wildlife System, but often still work together towards a common outcome. That sense of collaboration is one aspect I look forward to with the consideration of our project and the second half of our work. While working in the field helping with aquatic invasive vegetation control, surveying turtle nests, or managing family friendly hunts has been a great experience, I’ve had a little less time to work on the climate vulnerability aspect of the project. The first half of our project was to evaluate and determine the vulnerabilities of our refuge by considering the habitats, species, and the major drivers of change.  Now that we are in the second half of the project, we will be taking the information we’ve gathered to eventually generate future possible climate scenarios for our station, determine best management practices for those scenarios, and metrics to measure the impact of those practices. Here in Santee National Wildlife Refuge my research has led me to focus my work on the impacts of the interactions between aquatic invasive species and rising temperatures with a changing precipitation regime. I guess we’ll find out in the next post what we get into this winter and how far we progress in our assessment.

While connecting with the land and the community in the Low Country here in South Carolina has been great, its also important to remember why we are doing this. This fellowship is designed to be an 18-month long program to develop a rapid climate vulnerability and risk assessment at our stations. While my focus is on Santee NWR, the hope is that through the program, fellows will develop a framework or product that can be applicable to other refuges across the nation. Getting boots on the ground working with biologists and equipment operators and reading through the plans and documents of the refuge has allowed us the opportunity of really getting to know the refuge we were assigned to, the habitats and landscapes that compose it, and its inhabitants both yearlong and migrant.

Starting this fellowship as a Civilian Climate Corps Fellow with the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) through the Hispanic Access Foundation (HAF) has been the perfect way to start off the new year in 2022, I know it’s a mouthful. Since graduating from University of South Florida in 2019 with a Bachelor’s in ecology and evolution I have worked in many fields like manufacturing and production, or utility vegetation management. Becoming a part of the NWRS at Santee National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) has been a whirlwind of experiences; from general training and orientation to getting boots on the ground and seeing for myself the Refuge and everything it supports. Santee NWR is perfectly situated on the northern bank of Lake Marion a man-made lake, on Interstate I-95 and was established as a sanctuary for waterfowls like ducks and geese in 1942; as the grasslands, bottomland forests, ponds and swamps all provide excellent habitats. 

Something I was lucky enough to get the chance of seeing during the last waterfowl survey of this year was the sheer number of birds and species found on the refuge. From thousands of ducks in a flotilla, like the Ring-Neck or the Wood Duck to hundreds of American Pelican soaring above, it’s hard to miss why this refuge is needed. Not only for the birds but species like bats, deer, racoons, otters, alligators, lizards, turtles, frogs, and salamanders all benefit from the haven of the refuge in some way. Having the chance to participate in the discussions of managing for these species and habitats now and in the future really brings into focus having foresight, especially in the context of climate change and its effects on wildlife and their habitats.  As we feel the effects of climate change more and more though the century there will be an increase in application of the Resist-Accept-Direct framework (RAD), an idea of starting the discussion of how to manage habitats in current and future conditions. In that light the work can sound daunting, but I always think back to a quote from Overwatch “Never accept the world as it appears to be but, dare to see it for what it could be” and I feel galvanized to ensuring I do everything I can to help preserve the natural world through this fellowship.

While on the Refuge it’s always nice to speak with patrons, both local and transient to really understand the importance of Santee NWR to people.  From fishing and boating, hiking and birding, to just taking a nice quite 10-minute pit stop off the highway, the value of the refuge cannot be overstated.  Already in such a short time I have been able to connect with the SCCC (South Carolina Conservationist of Color) group as well as other gov entities and branches. Participating in the climate workshops with Refuge managers, Inventory and Monitoring Staff (I&M), and others in the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), I have been able to pull back the curtain and see what we as a community are doing to protect and steward the natural world, even around man-made lakes.  They say, ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ and just from my short time during this fellowship it looks like it’s going to take more than the village to stifle the effects of climate change.

 For now, at least you know where I’ll be and we’ll find out what else we can get into, and remember to keep daring to be RAD.

Agency: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Program: Civilian Climate Corps Program (CCC)

Location: Santee NWR

Daniel Asyn is a Fellow of the Hispanic Access Foundation working under groups like the FWC (Fish and Wildlife Commission), and NWR (National Wildlife Refuge) on the mitigation of impacts from global warming and its effects on wildlife refuges in South Carolina. Daniel has had the opportunity to work in a variety of spaces from production labs to working on field sites. With a mentality of dedication and perseverance, taught to him at an early age through martial arts, Daniel believes with a little teamwork and effort nothing is too big or difficult to handle. Aside from a good gaming session, you can also find Daniel out in the park with his dog or in the gym training.