Your generous donation will help us teach key geoscience concepts, field skills, and conservation best practices to US and Caribbean students as they work with our Jamaican collaborators!
GEOPAths GO Jamaica is a program that brings together undergraduates, graduates, scholars, and conservation experts from the USA and the Caribbean to protect and study coastal ecosystems. The program recruits US and Jamaican students to research specific projects each summer (the 2024 projects are here). This work culminates in a 2-3 week field trip to Jamaica to collect data, work with local communities, and learn about coastal hazards by exploring the interconnection of different Earth Science fields (e.g., paleontology, oceanography, biogeochemistry, ecology, etc.).
By working with our partners in Jamaica (the University of the West Indies and several local non-profits), students learn about geoscience research and how to work with communities to provide sustainable solutions to local (and global) problems. We integrate local knowledge of these coastal ecosystems with our scientific research to develop solutions that support both ecosystem and community health and resilience in the face of future change.
What will your donation fund?
Your donation supports the conservation research that will be conducted in Jamaica, as well as student travel and scientific activities. With enough donations, we could even bring more students to the island!
The research conducted during field trips varies by year and student project interests, but can include:
A baby Hawksbill turtle that the team helped get from its nest to the water
The 2024 team studying the fossil reef at Dragon Point
Local fishery warden from the Alligator Head Foundation getting ready for a modern reef ecology assessment
The GEOPAths GO Jamaica team and Alligator Head Foundation wardens learning how to core a coral
This level funds one full set of water quality analyses from water collected at the reefs or mangroves.
This level funds three full sets of water quality analyses from water collected at the reefs or mangroves.
Supports necessary equipment for mangrove and reef monitoring (i.e., loggers for in situ monitoring)
Jamaica gained its independence on August 6, 1962! This level honors that important event!
This level supports the participation of two Jamaican students in the 2025 summer research program.
Fund the participation of one extra student from the USA! A donation of this size covers travel, lodging, and food!