I thought I knew New England when I moved to New Hampshire. I had another thing coming. Being born and raised in Connecticut, I’ve experienced winter. I even remember the blizzard of 2013 when the snow got 5 feet deep in some places! But it always melted quickly, and I could shed my layers soon after.
Not in New Hampshire. People are surely built differently here. To be able to consistently withstand the snowfall and cold, they’re the strongest people I’ve met in my life. Jill Emerson, my supervisor has not been seen with anything thicker than a flannel this entire winter. I aspire to be her.
Beside the wicked cold, New Hampshire has been an adjustment in many other ways. I’ve never experienced rural life to this degree. Growing up about an hour and a half from New York City, I’ve always been very privileged to have walkable communities with events every weekend. Effingham, New Hampshire is just a bit different. But with the quiet also comes a deeper reflection than I’ve been able to achieve elsewhere. My nature walks feel more pure, compared to the city parks I’ve been surrounded by. And people are genuinely much nicer (somebody should do a study on this - Granite staters are alarmingly kind). While I may not be able to walk a few blocks to the closest grocery store, I can climb a mountain in my backyard and have the loveliest chat of my life at the Tamworth Farmers Market. I’d say that’s a pretty good trade.
This state has given me my new service position as well! As a Water Quality Resource Assistant at Green Mountain Conservation Corps, I’ve been given the opportunity to grow immensely as a scientist. Green Mountain is very unique in that we engage in conservation through multiple avenues. Research is one of these pillars, along with education, advocacy, and land conservation. Personally, my favorite is research. Throughout the year I’m going to have the chance to assist in and lead multiple projects which track the water quality of the Ossipee Watershed. This includes RIVERS, a community-based long term monitoring program (that is starting next month!), as well as LLMP and VLAP, our lake monitoring programs. Other projects span the study of eDNA as a sign for invasive species, macroinvertebrates as indicator species, and E.coli tracking in high use areas. All of these topics are new to me. While I can bring my experience in running a community science program, conducting aquarium and marine water quality to the table, I have plenty of room to grow at Green Mountain.
Being in a new environment such as New Hampshire and Green Mountain Conservation Group is a bit scary, honestly. It’s unfamiliar, and growing pains can be uncomfortable. But knowing that I have an amazing support system of my co-member, my peers at SLA and my supervisor is comforting. It doesn’t hurt either that I’m going to come out of this term a way more capable scientist than I was coming in. A few cold nights is definitely worth that.
Grace is the Water Quality Resource Assistant serving at Green Mountain Conservation Group as a full-year member. Learn more about Grace here!