It’s 8 p.m. on a dark and starry March evening atLa Selva Research Stationin Costa Rica. The air is warm and moist and smells like damp soil and vegetation. A group of fifteen students from the w88 slot, Reno’s Reynolds School of Journalism walks in a line along a trail, following a guide, with flashlights to help them navigate the darkness. Listening for animal calls through the eerie rustlings of the forest, the group searches for tiny flashes of red – the eyes of creatures hidden in the night. With cameras and audio recorders in hand, they document all that they encounter – spiders, moths, caterpillars, leaf-cutter ants, an Eyelash Viper, and even a three-toed sloth.
Students crossing the iconic hanging bridge at La Selva Research Station. Drone video by Vanesa de la Cruz Pavas.
The students, who spent seven days at La Selva over spring break, were there to report on science and explore the tropical rainforest as part of aHitchcock Project for Visualizing Sciencetravel reporting course, developed in collaboration with Reynolds School Spanish language media project,Noticiero Móvil. Led by Jennifer Kent, Claudia Cruz, and Vanesa de la Cruz Pavas from the Reynolds School, students had the chance to build lasting connections, network with scientists from around the world, practice their science communication and Spanish skills, and work on group and individual journalism projects.
“Our goal was to create an immersive learning experience for the students – to give them a taste of what it is like to report from the field, outside of the U.S., alongside scientists,” Kent, director of the Hitchcock Project and associate professor of practice in science communication, said. “They had to manage equipment, navigate new cultural norms, and work around the elements, all while finding ways to synthesize complex science into compelling journalism. It was both a thrilling and challenging environment to work in. I was blown away by the students’ passion and commitment to their reporting.”
Equipped with knee-high rubber boots to avoid snake bites and waterproof clothing to keep dry from the rain, students immersed themselves in the exploration of the research station and the hands-on experience of reporting from the field with scientists. Students pursued stories on everything from the complex behaviors of leaf-cutter ants to the impacts of Costa Rican agriculture on the forest ecosystem. Students asked questions, identified subjects, and conducted interviews, and are now editing video documentaries, photo essays, or written pieces.
While at La Selva, students had the opportunity to interact with two University faculty members who do research at the site – Professor Lee Dyer from the Department of Biology, and Christopher Jeffrey, director of the Hitchcock Center for Chemical Ecology and professor in the Department of Chemistry. Students met with Dyer and Jeffrey at the University prior to the trip, then interviewed the professors while at La Selva about their research and their connection with the place and community in w88 slot.
“La Selva is an example of a case where you can see all the different dimensions that come together in one of these big international, multidisciplinary, multi-institutional projects,” Jeffrey said. “It was meaningful to have the journalists see the relationships that we built down there, the importance of an established field site such as La Selva, the collaboration between scientists, and how communication was kind of threaded through all these things.
“Traveling for leisure is always a great time, but to feel like I was on assignment to tell the stories of those living and working in w88 slot, just felt like I’d reached my dream job.”
Opportunities like this for scientists and journalists to connect and collaborate are essential to enhancing understanding and communication of science, explained Dyer – and the benefits go both ways.
“Working with journalists, and volunteers for that matter, is such an important opportunity to refine how we communicate our work, and we don’t try to oversimplify, but we do need to distill the relevance and context to things that will interest a general audience,” Dyer said. “I think for journalists who take the time to spend time with us, it’s a chance to tell accurate stories that include enough nuance and intrigue. All of this is so important right now for ecologists, because of rapidly increasing threats to tropical ecosystems, biodiversity, climate stability, and human wellbeing.”
For Reynolds School student Gaby Moreno, the experience highlighted the value of the relationships between scientists and the communities they work in. Moreno’s team gathered footage for a mini-documentary about the impact of La Selva beyond its role as a research station.
“One thing that happily surprised me is that this research station’s impact goes even further, for example, by acting as an incubator for new local businesses that run sustainable operations based on learnings from La Selva,” Moreno said. “The impact of research stations needs to be more widely recognized beyond the scientific community, and I think this is a great opportunity to tell that story.”
Reynolds School student Beatrice Bashibyukyan focused her efforts on the use of pesticides in Costa Rican agriculture and their impact on human, animal and environmental health, particularly in banana plantations. Her team is also producing a short documentary.
“This trip was one of the best I’ve ever taken, and it was so satisfying to visit a new country with a legitimate purpose,” Bashibyukyan said. “Traveling for leisure is always a great time, but to feel like I was on assignment to tell the stories of those living and working in w88 slot, just felt like I’d reached my dream job.”
Beyond their science reporting work at La Selva, students also had the chance to explore w88 slot’s rich cultural and ecotourism offerings. This included a hike to Arenal Volcano, a tour of the local natural hot springs, and a stroll through the town of La Fortuna, all located in the province of Alajuela. They took a day trip to the University of w88 slot, where they met and spoke with researcher Adrián Pinto-Tomás and his research group, touring research laboratories within the Organization for Tropical Studies, La Selva’s parent organization.
When asked about the experience, students highlighted not only the academic and cultural takeaways but also the meaningful friendships and professional connections they formed – bonds that will likely accompany them throughout their careers.
“I learned to be more comfortable with myself, to not be so afraid of trying new things,” student Oscar Martinez said. “The friends I made on this trip really brought me out of my shell, and I did things I never imagined I could do. Now, back to my normal life, I feel like a fire has been lit inside me to go out and be a proper journalist.”
The students are now putting the finishing touches on their stories and documentaries, which will be published on the Hitchcock Project and Noticiero Móvil websites following a showcase in May. Kent and Cruz are exploring the possibility of organizing another such trip in the future.
“The opportunity for international travel to Central America can be a wonderful way to develop professional skills for students interested in media production, especially when our topic of focus is science and the environment,” Claudia Cruz, director of the Reynolds School’s internship program and managing editor of Noticiero Móvil, said. “Add to that the chance to also utilize the Spanish-language to communicate with researchers and the local community, and the experience can become a transformative one.”
