Marielle Villa


 
Hi everyone!

My name is Marielle, and I'm a senior Biology major. I was born in Manila, Philippines, and have moved to 6 different cities throughout the years. After taking an evolution class at Baylor, my interest in exploring anthropogenic research has grown, and I could not say no to a Galapagos trip! I believe that there are many answers we can find to complex questions in science by immersing ourselves in nature and all of the experiences it has to offer. I look forward to learning more about the culture and history of Ecuador while documenting our findings and favorite experiences!




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Day 8

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 Hey there, Marielle and Tyler here!! Today was a pretty chillax day here in the island of San Cristobal. We started our day off with Dr. M discussing research, learning about the processes of it, along with things to consider when conducting it. He went over important concepts and terms that are tailored to our research of health, animals, and tourism. For instance, the term biophilia. This term tells us how humans feel strong emotions to own or touch wildlife in its natural process. He also mentioned important ethical concerns to consider, especially when it comes to social media. As it can lead to negative behaviors and attitudes towards animals because people our doing things for views and likes to seek external validation, even though it is not the right thing to do. After lecture we practiced our people skills by practicing the survey scripts amongst ourselves. Once all was said and done we got lunch at a local restaurant and used the rest of free time to experience the islan...
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Day 18 - Would you like to take our survey?

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While we love to focus our blogs on all of the fun excursions and activities that we have experienced here in Ecuador, the main reason for our study abroad is research. We have mentioned days filled with research, and I'm sure that many of you parents and grandparents have heard the program described as a health research opportunity. However,  I'm not sure that we have specifically described the purpose of our surveys. Dr. M is specifically interested in the idea of One Health, a subtopic of global health that emphasizes the interactions between humans, animals, and the environment. Specifically, he focuses his research on the anthroponotic transmission of infectious diseases. In simple terms, he is looking at how humans can give diseases to non-human animals. Much of his research has been focused on primates in Asia, but this trip is focused on the animals in the Galápagos, such as sea lions, tortoises, and iguanas. So why is this research so important? There is a distinct lac...
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Day 6

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Today we started with an early morning as we left for the airport at 5:30am. After a long check-in process to maintain biosecurity in the islands, we started our journey to the Galápagos. When we arrived, we stopped at our new hotel, which has wonderful views! We dropped our luggage off and then headed to the Galápagos campus of USFQ with our amazing guide, Kathe. It was "El Día del Tiburón" or "shark day" on the campus, so we were able to witness some neat educational efforts by the university to promote conservation. After a quick orientation, Kathe showed us around the town in San Cristobal. We walked along the pier, and saw many sea lions and even a blue-footed boobie !!! We finished the day with a welcome dinner with some USFQ staff. At the end of our dinner, a processional passed by celebrating the Virgin Mary. It was a great first day in the Galápagos, and we are all so excited to spend the next few weeks on the islands! -Sarah + Grace
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