Ask the Experts
Interview with a Volunteer Fire Fighter
We interviewed Rami Vissel, a volunteer firefighter who fought the Loma Fire. She talked to us about how amazing her experience was and how fires impacted the land.
"I saw it and I had this physical urge and I just wanted to go fight it! I just felt like I had to go! It was amazing and intense. We would stand in the line between the fire and people's houses. It was incredible."
- Rami Vissel, volunteer fire fighter with Cal Fire
Rami talked to us about our project:
"That's awesome! It's super cool!"
Field Trip to UCSC
Maddie Erbe, a 7th grader on our team, organized a field trip to go to University of California Santa Cruz Forest Ecology Research Plot (F.E.R.P) to learn about forest research. We met with Alex Jones, the UCSC Campus Natural Reserve Manager, who educates UCSC undergrads.
Alex gave us a tour and taught us new ways to observe the forest. He talked about the natural history of the UCSC campus, including how fires impacted the landscape. He told us about why they are planning a prescribed burn in one of the areas and how some plants have evolved to depend on fire.
When one of our publicity team members asked Alex about his reaction when he read the email about our project, he said:
"I was really impressed that you, as the students, were reaching out to me, and that you had an ambitious project. I think that your project you have could make a huge impact in the area where you are. I was really excited to meet you."
- Alex Jones, UCSC Campus Natural Reserve Manager
On that field trip, Alex talked to us about our project and our team:
"Your class is creative, proactive, curious, and motivated. The project is awesome. I think you should document it with field journals. I think that it's good that you are incorporating education and this is definitely something that you could do for the rest of your life."
- Alex Jones, UCSC Campus Natural Reserve Manager
We will soon begin field journaling. Thanks Alex!
To learn more about their research, here is the link to the F.E.R.P website.
Cal Fire
Our teacher will be attending a Loma Fire tour with CalFire and Santa Clara County FireSafe Council in December. She is working directly with Cal Fire to learn more about the Loma Fire Site restoration efforts, and how we can help. Cal Fire has been very supportive, and is helping to create additional learning opportunities for us. We are in the process of coordinating a restoration project at the burn site where we can plant trees, install equipment to measure erosion, and more. THANKS AGAIN CAL FIRE!