From Portland, OR, Erica grew up surrounded by the beauty of the Pacific Northwest, always excited to go hiking and camping with her family in the surrounding nature. She is a Duke Kunshan University undergraduate student who has been studying at Duke due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently declaring her major in Environmental Science with a track in Biogeochemistry, Erica is interested in learning more about biodiversity conservation and research. Over the summer, she assisted with the Poulsen Lab’s digitization of vegetation data from Ivindo National Park in Gabon, as part of Dr. Maicher’s research in understanding the intricate interactions between trees and animals.