2025 Summer Interns
MACO's 2025 Summer Interns will experience the Oregon Coast by working for partner organizations like the Oregon Coast Aquarium, MidCoast Watersheds Council, Marine Mammal Institute, and the Climate Monitering Station. Explore this years internship descriptions to learn more about their interdisciplinary projects.
Sydney Johnson
Project:
Communications for Marine Conservation
Mentor organization:
Oregon Coast Aquarium
Recap of Internship:
“I completed a series of projects and assisted staff within the Education Department on initiatives related to Fisheries Management, Plastic Awareness, and survey collection and analysis for the Big Shark Pledge. These projects involved content creation, public engagement, data analysis, and communication.”
Bio:
Hi everyone, my name is Sydney Johnson. I am in my final year at OSU, majoring in Marine Studies. While growing up in a small rural farming community in Oregon, I grew up with love and respect for agriculture. I also grew up with a passion for marine sciences and sharing the interconnected dynamics of the land and sea.
This summer, I will work alongside the Oregon Coast Aquarium’s (OCA) education team in Newport, OR. Through public outreach efforts we will highlight conservation topics such as sustainable fisheries and plastics! The OCA is also a part of the Association of Zoos and Aquarium Shark and Ray Saving Animals from Extinction program (SAFE), so I will have the opportunity to support Shark Conservation efforts! From this internship, I look forward to collaborating with experts and community members. I love hands-on-experiences and I am excited to improve my skills in outreach, research and community-based leadership.
My favorite place to escape is anywhere outside. However, you could probably always find me along the coast or on the small family farm working in the fields. My go-to comfort foods are pasta—any kind with a cheesy sauce—or cheese and grapes.
Natalie Krempel
Project:
Fisheries and Beaver-Based Restoration and Education
Mentor organization:
MidCoast Watersheds Council
Recap of internship:
“I surveyed coastal streams ranging from headwaters to urban to estuarine. I also had several side projects including write-ups, interviews and mapping in GIS.”
Bio:
Hello! My name is Natalie, and I am a rising third year studying Ecological Engineering! I was born and raised in Las Vegas, NV, and hobbies of mine include painting and gardening. I will be spending the summer with the MidCoast Watershed Council working to calibrate the Beaver Restoration Assessment Tool for coastal environments. This project will help improve our understanding of how beavers use estuaries and how restoring their habit can support the recovery of Coho salmon. I am most looking forward to gaining experience in fieldwork, building connections with other interns, and broadening my knowledge base. I hope to refine my technical writing skills and learn principles of ecological restoration that I can apply to coursework and real-world conservation and restoration issues.
My favorite cartoon character is Daphne Blake, from Scooby Doo. When I need an "escape place," I drive around agricultural and country roads. My comfort food is any kind of schnitzel with spaetzle, sauerkraut, and gravy!
Maja White
Project:
Public Engagement with the Climate Monitoring Station
Mentor organization:
Climate Monitoring Station
Recap of internship:
"A bulk of my work was used for the development of the new Coastal Monitoring Station exhibit at the visitor center. My team collaborated with different groups and organizations to make this possible. Working with the iLab crew to create or replica framework, mounts, and the live camera portion of the exhibit. We also collaborated with UO reality lab to create our touchscreen ocean changes simulation game. Most of my work went towards the development of a new poster for the exhibit as well. Starting from scratch and using visitor survey data to highlight confusing ocean processes. User survey data was also recorded for the touchscreen simulation game.”
Bio:
Hello!!! My name is Maja White and I’m from Portland, OR. I am a third-year undergrad at Oregon State University majoring in Biology with a marine biology and ecology option. I will be a part of the Public Engagement with Climate Monitoring Station Internship through OSU’s MACO program. Through this internship, I will be engaging the public in climate science communication and gaining hands-on experience in environmental monitoring. I am especially looking forward to engaging and connecting with my fellow interns and engaging in real-world climate outreach; something I am passionate about. I hope to deepen my understanding of climate monitoring systems and science communication skills as I plan to carry forward in my future career as the new upcoming scientist of the world.
As for fun quirky facts about me, my favorite cartoon character is actually, the Disney princess Tiana. My favorite “escape” place would be the beach in general, but if time and cost wasn’t always limited, I would always go to my second home, Croatia. My favorite comfort food will always be sushi, any type:))
Hannah Wons
Project:
Science Communication and Public Outreach
Mentor organization:
Marine Mammal Institute
Recap of internship:
“I created a podcast for the Marine Mammal Institute. It was focused on cetaceans and consisted of 3 episodes. I also attended tabling events and helped write questions for them. At the end of the experience, I gave a presentation of my project and presented a poster at a symposium.”
Bio:
My name is Hannah Kamaileokahoiwai Wons and I am from Anaheim, California (yes, by Disneyland! My favorite Disney character is Remy from Ratatouille). I transferred to OSU in Fall 2024 for my second year of college. I am majoring in environmental science with a concentration in chemistry, and I hope to also double minor in applied journalism and psychology.
My MACO internship is Science Communication and Public Outreach for the Marine Mammal Institute. I’m thrilled that I was selected for this because I’m passionate about not only informing others about science, but using the power of storytelling to share science in fun, engaging, and accessible ways. I look forward to exploring new avenues and testing the limits of what science communication looks like, and I hope to apply the communication and creative skills that I gain from this experience to my position in the field in the future.
Some more fun facts about me are that my favorite escape place is a bonfire at Newport Beach (the one in California, but Oregon is great too!), and my favorite comfort food is mashed potatoes!