Recently, graduate students from three Idaho universities took part in a retreat in McCall, Idaho. Held at McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS), a University of Idaho College of Natural Resources site, the gathering was an opportunity for students to connect and share their research experiences working on various I-CREWS projects.
Each student is a graduate research assistant with the Idaho Community-engaged Resilience for Energy-Water Systems (I-CREWS). I-CREWS is a National Science Foundation Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research that addresses challenges to Idaho’s energy-water systems.
Led by Boise State University’s Mitchell Meads, a postdoc researcher for I-CREWS who is affiliated with Boise State’s Resilience Institute, students braved the snow and participated in team-building activities, presented their unique research projects and enjoyed mapping exercises that helped students identify potential connections between research areas.
Tapiwa Mwila, a third-year graduate student in Boise State’s Computing Ph.D. program and a member of the I-CREWS modeling team, says she thoroughly enjoyed the retreat. She noted feeling an immediate sense of community and highlighted the meaningful exchange of ideas.
Mwila said, “It was a truly lovely experience… just seeing what everyone is working on and identifying potential connections between research areas. I am currently in touch with a few of those students, and we may explore potential collaboration that could support our broader graduate study goals.”
This publication was made possible by the NSF Idaho EPSCoR Program and by the National Science Foundation under award number OIA-2242769.