Pacific Internship Programs for Exploring Science (PIPES)

PIPES Alumni by Intern Year: 2019

All PIPES Alumni by Year

2019 University of Hawaiʻi Hawaiian Internship Program (UH-HIP) Interns

Amberly Pigao

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Restoring a new population of Palia birds to the north slope of Mauna Kea.

Mentor: Kala Asing.

Host Organization: Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project.

Anianikū Chong

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Ka Moʻolelo o Kou ʻĀina ʻŌiwi: The Moʻolelo of Your Native Homelands.

Mentor: Noʻeau Peralto.

Host Organization: Hui Mālama i ke Ala ʻŪlili.

Cecilia “Momi” Jeschke

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Silvicultural Techniques to Improve Growth Form of Koa Trees on Hawaii Island.

Mentor: J.B. Friday and Kyle Rose.

Host Organization: College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) at the University of Hawaii.

Crystal-lynn Baysa

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Community-based Conservation Research and Restoration.

Mentor: Ulu Ching and Kehau Springer.

Host Organization: Conservation International.

Darienne Kealoha

From: O'ahu.

Project: Social Media Strategies of Scientific Educational Videos on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Mentor: Kelsea Kanohokuahiwi Hosoda.

Host Organization: ʻIke Pāpālua.

Darrian Muraoka

From: O'ahu.

Project: Habitat Mapping at He’eia National Estuary Research Reserve.

Mentor: Katie Taladay.

Host Organization: NOAA Office for Coastal Management and He’eia National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Desiree “Hoku” Fukuoka

From: Molokai.

Project: Kāwao Kaʻamola.

Mentor: Pūlama Lima.

Host Organization: Ka Ipu Makani Cultural Heritage Center.

Elizabeth Lough

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Immune gene diversity in Hawaiʻi ʻAmakihi, ʻApapane and ʻIʻiwi..

Mentor: Jolene Sutton and Jared Nishimoto.

Host Organization: Conservation Genomics Research Group.

Hiʻilani Pai

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Nāpuʻu Outreach and Education.

Mentor: Melanie Leilā Dudley.

Host Organization: Nāpuʻu Conservation Program.

Justice Castroverde-Moniz

From: Maui.

Project: Impacts on Kōʻieʻie Loko Iʻa.

Mentor: Patty Miller.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Kaiʻanui Andaya

From: Kauai.

Project: The Application of Geospatial Surveying Methods in the Ahupuaʻa of Keawanui & Kailapa.

Mentor: Ryan Perroy and James Melcher IV.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Kamalani Oshiro

From: O'ahu.

Project: The Biogeography of Aquatic Pathogens in Hawaiian Watersheds.

Mentor: Kiana L. Frank.

Host Organization: Pacific Biosciences Research Center, Kewalo Marine Laboratory.

Kohlby Soong

From: O'ahu.

Project: Analyzing 15N signatures in algal tissue in Heʻeia Fishpond to determine wastewater input..

Mentor: Kawika Winter,Yoshimi Rii, and Frederick Reppun.

Host Organization: Heʻeia National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Matthew Kahoʻohanohano

From: Maui.

Project: Watershed Management in Maui Nui.

Mentor: Kekoa Gurat.

Host Organization: The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii.

Mehana Sabado-Halpern

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Engendering Behavior Change for Conservation.

Mentor: Franny Brewer and Kawehi Lopez.

Host Organization: Big Island Invasive Species Committee.

Mia Melamed

From: Kauaʻi.

Project: Kauaʻi North Shore Marine Monitoring Project: Gathering baseline data of ʻopihi populations and coral recruitment.

Mentor: Cameron Kaʻilikea Shayler and McKenna Allen.

Host Organization: Hawaiʻi Division of Aquatic Resources, Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Nahi Nawahine-Pilago

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Māmane and Palila Monitoring in Kaohe and Pu’u Mali.

Mentor: Kala Asing.

Host Organization: Division of Forestry and Wildlife.

Scott Tamayo

From: Kauaʻi.

Project: Creating a Habitat for Yellow-faced Bees in Lawai Kai.

Mentor: Ashly Trask.

Host Organization: National Tropical Botanical Garden.

Taylor Maruno

From: O'ahu.

Project: Mapping the Historic Distribution of Native Hawaiian Helicinids Across the Hawaiian Islands.

Mentor: Norine Yeung.

Host Organization: Bishop Museum.

Taylor Quinories

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Integrating cultural knowledge with restoration efforts on Maunakea.

Mentor: Fritz Klasner and Jessica Kirkpatrick.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Trevor Yatomi

From: O'ahu.

Project: Developing techniques for restoring marine ecosystems.

Mentor: Chelsea Wolke.

Host Organization: Division of Aquatic Resources, Hawaiʻi Coral Restoration Nursery.

Twylah Morelli

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: A guide to the Kaʻūpūlehu Dryland Forest Preserve Place-Based Observations Database.

Mentor: Wilds Pihanui Brawner.

Host Organization: Ka’ūpūlehu Dryland Forest Preserve/ Hawai’i Forest Industry Association.

Yoko Uyehara

From: O'ahu.

Project: Pelekane Historical Imagery Orthomosaic, Sediment erosion hotspot identification, and classification.

Mentor: Katie Taladay.

Host Organization: Office of Coastal Management and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Zion Tamashiro

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Temporal Analysis and Region Origin (TARO) of Mauna Loa Ash Deposits.

Mentor: Jefferson Chang and Frank Trusdell.

Host Organization: United States Geological Survey: Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

2019 Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Interns

Anuhea Robins

From: O'ahu.

Project: Comparing microarthropod communities amongst different plant species’ leaf litter in a Hawaiian lowland wet forest.

Mentor: Rebecca Ostertag and Robert Peck.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo and United States Geological Survey.

Hallie Whitmore

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Horizontal transfer of wolbachia from aedes albopictus to culex Quinquefasciatus.

Mentor: Jared Nishimoto and Jolene Sutton.

Host Organization: Conservation Genomics Research Group.

Jesse Tabor

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Invasive Potential for Non-Native Bees Present in Hawai’i.

Mentor: Jon Koch.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Mario Kaluhiokalani

From: O'ahu.

Project: Genetic Barcoding of the native, Mugil cephalus, and invasive, Osteomugil engeli, mullet in a coastal Hawaiian fishpond.

Mentor: John HR Burns.

Host Organization: Multiscale Environmental Graphical Analysis (MEGA) Lab.

Nikko Bjontegard

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Assessing The Effectiveness Of Ceratocystis Management Methods To Decrease The Spread Of Rapid ʻŌhi’a Death In Hawai‘i.

Mentor: Robert Peck, Kylle Roy, and Kelly Jaenecke.

Host Organization: Hawai‘i Cooperatives Studies Unit , U.S. Geological Survey, and Pacific Island Ecosystem Research Center.

Shelbi Madera

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Pollen Disbarment of Hawaiian Nectivorous Birds.

Mentor: Kristina Paxton.

Host Organization: Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science program University of Hawaii Hilo, LOHE lab.

Tamara Tso

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Oyster Conditions in Land Based Aquaculture Operations Compared to Conditions in Hilo Bay Research Farm.

Mentor: Maria Haws and Daniel Wilkie.

Host Organization: Pacific Aquaculture & Coastal Resource Center.

Uʻilani Jesse-Kealanahele

From: O'ahu.

Project: Sewage pollution impacts on Puakō’s coral reefs.

Mentor: Tracy N. Wiegner and Devon K. Aguiar.

Host Organization: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Valentine Santarone III

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Species-typical behavior analyses on ‘alalā (corvus hawaiiensis) Responding to native plant species enrichment..

Mentor: Alison Flanagan and Bryce Masuda.

Host Organization: Hawai’i Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

Yukio Ishii

From: Hawaiʻi.

Project: Mapping of Water Motion in Anthropogenic Areas at Puakō, Hawaiʻi.

Mentor: Devon Aguiar.

Host Organization: University of Hawaii at Hilo: Marine Science Department.

2019 Micronesia and American Samoa Student Internship Program (MASSIP) Interns

Casidhe Mahuka

From: American Samoa.

Project: Samoa Coral Reef Advisory Group.

Mentor: Sabrina Woofter.

Host Organization: Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources - American Samoa Coral Reef Advisory Group.

Jennet Chang

From: American Samoa.

Project: Implementing a watershed restoration project in American Samoa.

Mentor: DJ Sene.

Host Organization: American Samoa Community College Division of Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources.

Joshua Muna

From: Guam.

Project: How Coral Reefs are Bleaching on Guam.

Mentor: Mike Gawel and Ashton Williams.

Host Organization: Guam War in the Pacific National Historical Park.

Mira Eyangel Mariur

From: Palau.

Project: Coral Response to Heat Stress.

Mentor: Victor Nestor.

Host Organization: Palau International Coral Reef Center.

Yubee Isaac

From: Palau.

Project: Coral Reefs in the National Parks of the Pacific.

Mentor: Sharon Ziegler-Chong.

Host Organization: Community and Research Partnerships Pacific Internship Program for Exploring Science.