Maya Lee Email and Phone Number

I worked with NJR Natural Gas as a GIS Intern, where I was tasked with data management. I scanned over 500 maps, inputted over a hundred service edits, and collected GPS points out in the field. As part of the intern program, I visited construction sites, toured an LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) plant, and participated in a mentor circle. I got to attend a volunteer event, build my resume, and was chosen to present on my experience at the end of the internship.

I am working with two other interns and the BFC to analyze geospatial data on bison movement patterns. Our main object is to explore and map data to support establishing movement corridors and protected wildlife crossings. We have weekly meetings to discuss our progress and goals. I visited the field site in West Yellowstone for 2 weeks in May to help with fieldwork.

Over the summer of 2023, I was an intern for the Winterthur’s Natural Lands team. I assisted with environmental projects in meadows, woods, streams, and ponds to enhance habitat for native wildlife. I often used mowers, tractors, backhoes, string trimmers, leaf blowers, pruners, and handsaws to remove invasive plants and manage trails. On education days, I participated in plant identification classes and field trips in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the wider field of public horticulture. I also monitored and collected weekly nest data on local bird populations with an interest in kestrels and eastern bluebirds. I worked with another intern and the natural lands team to create multiple floats for turtles to bask on in ponds. Every week, I provided care, cleaning, and enrichment for Winterthur’s herd of sheep and goats. My regular work week was around 40 hours in heat-intensive conditions.

Over the summer of 2022, I worked as a Research Assistant for Malso Labs. In this particular position, I assisted Ecologists in setting up mist nets, used radiofrequency trackers, and collected DNA samples to capture, track, and record the Eastern Red Bat species in Morristown and New Brunswick, NJ. Some other skills I utilized in this internship were recording critical measurements of the bats and logging roosting tree data. I also helped set up bat houses for families with bats on their property. Furthermore, I was part of the sampling and processing team for a bat eDNA bridge-sampling project at multiple sites throughout New Jersey. I spent over 135 total hours in the field in this position, not including my 4-hour daily commute to the mist netting sites. Depending on my task, I would spend 3-9 hours at these sites, carrying heavy equipment, traveling through thorny underbrush, extreme heat, and other labor-intensive conditions.