S05 E09 - Lexi Armstrong - Assistant Conservation Biologist - Nature Conservancy of Canada

Today we sit down with Lexi Armstrong. Lexi is an Assistant Conservation Biologist for the Invasive Species Program at the Nature Conservancy of Canada.  Lexi talks about her journey becoming a conservation biologist and what she loves most about her current position! 

Tune in this week as we learn how she uses her passion for nature to eradicate invasive species and make room for regeneration of native species. 

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Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events! 

Transcript

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Kandyce 0:00

hello everyone and welcome to season five episode nine of emerging leaders for biodiversity. How do I do this? And environmental career podcast? Our guest today is Lexi Armstrong. Lexie works as an assistant conservation biologist. And the invasive species program at the nature Conservancy of Canada. Lexi discusses. The really cool aspects of her job and the fun places she gets to go and how she got where she is today. I've had the privilege of meeting and working with Lexi myself. But for anybody that doesn't know you, could you please introduce yourself, Lexi?

Lexi 0:43

My name is Lexi Armstrong, and I go by she slash her.

Kandyce 0:48

Awesome. Thank you.

Alex 0:49

Tell us a little bit about yourself, Lexi. Who are you and what do you do?

Lexi 0:52

So I am a biologist and I love to share the outdoor world and my knowledge with others. I enjoy hiking, I'm also a rowing coach, and I like nature photography.

Alex 1:10

Yeah, I was gonna say, nature photography seems to be a really common theme on the show, and I think just biologists in general.

Lexi 1:17

Well, you can capture the beauty then it's such a win.

Alex 1:21

So what's a day in the life of Lexi look like? I know obviously you're a biologist, but what kind of projects are you working on?

Lexi 1:26

So, I, work as an assistant conservation biologist in the Invasive Species program, and currently I am specializing on invasive fraidees the day-to-day varies quite a lot for me in my role. For example, yesterday we did a long, field work day out in the marshes, uh, port Franks on Lake Huron. And then today I was cleaning equipment and working on grant reports for our team. And yeah, so it's office work and field work, but, gotta go to some pretty cool places.

Kandyce 2:07

That's awesome. So what are the main, invasive species that you deal with the majority of the year?

Lexi 2:13

So, I've had two roles since I started with the Nature Conservancy of Canada. In my first role I did a variety of invasives based on their seasonality. So we started with garlic mustard and then we moved into other species such as, dog Strangling V and Dame's Rocket. We did Scott's Pine and thistle management and then we've moved into, woody shrub control with, Norway Maples and Manitoba maples, which are native in Canada, but not in southern Ontario. fun factor there. Some spruce trees and autumn olive and common buckthorne so it's been a big variety. And in my current role where I moved, I'm only focusing on invasive Frank, my knee and it's expansion across Southern Ontario.

Kandyce 3:10

And you get to use some pretty cool toys to control that, don't you?

Lexi 3:15

Yes.

Alex 3:16

Like the Marsh Master Tank. Do you?

Lexi 3:18

I do

Alex 3:20

Oh, that's awesome.

Lexi 3:21

So I am one of the drivers of a marsh master for our organization. I think it's a rare piece of equipment that people get to drive, it's like a tank with pontoons, so you get to float your way, around the marsh, but it's not a good swimmer. We're crossing a channel just yesterday and I'm just like, the snails are laughing at us like you're going under half a kilometer, maybe speed. Sometimes you're wondering if you're even going anywhere. And so you panic a bit but it just takes time until it can grab onto some vegetation mats or sand or whatever. But yeah, we use some hand saws to. Cut down, Frank Mighty's as well in the wintertime. And yeah, a lot of, sprayers too that we get to ride around with and yeah, it's cool. it's super fun. It's a lot of cool equipment.

Alex 4:17

Yeah. That's awesome. As someone who's had to like bust their way through Fred looking for turtles, like kill it all. Kill, kill it all however you can. I hate it so much.

Lexi 4:26

I know the poor turtles also try to bust through and they can't. So I'm ready to get rid of it all.

Kandyce 4:34

For anyone listening that maybe isn't very familiar with Frankies, why is it so important to reduce the amount in all of these areas?

Lexi 4:44

So, fra like any invasive, is really good at becoming a monoculture. And so I was working out on Long Point in Lake Erie and it was just hectors and hectors of just invasive frag. And so it reduced the biodiversity drastically, which is super important for ecosystem health and human health. It also hinders turtles from nesting up on the shores. And with all our endangered turtles we have here in Ontario, it's important to give them the best chance they have. So removing frag is a key component to that. It also, reduces the amount of bird species that can nest in an area. So as I'm aware of, it's only the red wing black bird that seems to be very successful in those dense patches of fraidees. And every other bird kind of has to find somewhere else to nest. It also reduces native plants. So it's a allopathic, so it actually sends out chemicals that kill other plants, but that's part of the reason is it also kills off native plants. But yeah, so Frank is just super bad. It affects, animals and it affects, other native plant species and reduces biodiversity, which is something that we're trying to increase.

Kandyce 6:08

Yes. Make room for those native plants and all the little happy, happy turtles. Mm-hmm.

Alex 6:15

I was wondering how many days it would take you to just slowly. Chuck along the coast to get up and around

Lexi 6:23

if there, like, even if you were not having waves crash against you

Alex 6:27

mm-hmm. Yeah. Forget the waves. You just, you have all the time in the world to just coast.

Kandyce 6:31

You could kayak faster,

Lexi 6:34

solid day's.

Kandyce 6:37

So we've chatted about some of the cool toys that you get to use. But I was wondering, how does your current position differ with the seasons. Are you inside more than the winter time or A little bit of both?

Lexi 6:51

So, in the wintertime we do have a lot of reporting that we need to send into our funders, based on the activities that we did in summer and fall. we also still do winter management of Frankies, so that's when we do our cutting and rolling. So that we can give other native plants a chance to grow back. So when they are in dense monocultures, if you can cut down the stalks, it'll allow more light to come in for other plants. And also we roll in big areas to break up vegetation mats, so that, again, other native species have a shot at regenerating. And in summer, we are out, actively engaging our partners. Currently we are expanding in a private landowner program as well as doing our coastal wetlands, with provincial and federal partners. And so what that kind of looks like is we're going out, we're meeting people in the community, we're serving for frag, contacting people, letting them know the problems with Bragg, how it affects agriculture and, funding for the community and the consequences if we don't manage it. And then after we can engage people like that, we have people sign up for our program and we implement it. And so we start controlling the FRA in August and going straight doing some field work and spraying until October. And, yeah, that's pretty much, the look at my year right now. So, there's a lot of outdoor work, which is super enjoyable, but then you also have a balance of some office stuff, so

Kandyce 8:31

That's awesome. So yeah, you're kind of like in and out and in and out.

Alex 8:36

So, I know you're new at N C C this last year, but it sounds like you've done a bit of contract jumping beforehand. Kinda wanna talk about how you got to the n c position?

Lexi 8:47

So how far back do we need to go? I have a long career trajectory.

Kandyce 8:56

It's totally up to you. Whatever you feel comfortable with.

Lexi 9:00

Okay, we're gonna summarize this, uh, So my first biology job that I had was with the invasive PMI control center. And so I'm back, I'm back with Frank again. but so

Alex 9:19

that's what it's all about.

Lexi 9:20

Yeah, right. So I started out in frag management as a technician, and then I also had a role in, university for one of my summer positions. I had a scholarship to go over to Germany. And there I did research in Limnology, which is the study of, inland and freshwater systems. And there I was focusing on zoo plank. And so that was also an introductory into, biology and research. And so I really found a love for ecology. I then tried to do a master's and I was a graduate teaching assistant for an ecology class, and I really enjoyed that, being able to try and open kids' minds to ecology and just seeing the world in a different lens. And then from there I did the Canadian Conservation Corps, program. And that was through the Canadian Wildlife Federation. So I was a conservation intern with them, and that's when I was placed with the Cort, the Land Trust. Part of that program I really. Fell in love with the mission and the vision that land trusts have for protecting and preserving nature and kinda guaranteeing that there's room for wildlife to continue to prosper and also for human health reasons, like being able to go out and join natural spaces, which we really have benefited from, since the pandemic. And so from there I got a job as an environmental chemist in the winter when it was a down season. Um, chemistry was something I always loved in schooling but fieldwork pulls me back. So I then joined the Nature Conservancy of Canada as a field technician dealing with invasive species of all different kinds. And then that led me into the role I am now as an assistant conservation biologist, dealing with basic pmi.

Alex 11:27

That's great. That is a crazy range. You have been all over with everyone.

Lexi 11:31

I know So it's, it's been very diverse and I've lived in quite a few different cities so yeah, I was up, working in Thunder Bay and then when I was in Germany, I was down south in Munich and then Cologne, and then I moved back to Peterborough and then I was now here in Turkey Point. So I've been jumping around quite a bit. But, you gotta go where the work you love is, so that's just kind of what's been happening for me.

Kandyce 12:03

That's great. Yeah. I feel like it's super common with. People in the environmental field when they're first starting out. Or still in that contract phase. There's lots of hopping all over the place. I know I've done my fair share of hopping around as well, and that can definitely be stressful. For sure. We were just curious, what does your educational background look like? What did you go to school for?

Lexi 12:29

So I did my undergraduate degree at, Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. And, that's where I did my thesis in aquatic ecology and I focused on diversity in zoo plankton, communities. But, from there I started a master's at Lakehead University. and that was also in conservation biology. And something that really fascinated me was habitat corridors. I've always thought, wow, they're so cool. You know, they provide a lot of safe, refuge for, animals and areas where, you know, humans have a presence. So I was excited about that. And then I didn't actually end up finishing for different reasons I ended up, not enjoying my project as much as I wanted and so I got pulled in with the opportunity to go and do the more in-person fieldwork stuff with the Canadian Conservation Corps. And yeah, so I, oh, I got a bachelor's degree honors, bachelor's, but uh, didn't end up finishing my a Master's. But I think the path I've gone on since then is what I enjoy more and potentially I'll go back, but I don't know. I found it hard going straight into a master's in a pandemic. So uh, interesting. A lot of life building experience. But I'm not sure I recommend it for a lot of people.

Kandyce 14:06

Yeah. And we've talked to quite a few people that have kind of went down the same path and the masters isn't for everybody and work experience equals masters in a lot of cases as well.

Alex 14:20

Yeah, exactly. So between all that contract hopping, did you have any downtime in there? And if so, how did you. Deal with it, cope. Did you work in the unrelated field? Did you, do you do like some people where they just kinda hang out and wait for the spring? How did you deal with the in between times?

Lexi 14:39

So, I have had two periods of in between time, but they weren't very long. My first time was in between when I decided to leave my Master's and starting with the Canadian Conservation Corps. And, uh, maybe, maybe two months, maybe a bit more. But in that time I, I took a break because I enjoyed the hiking up in Thunder bay, nature Conservancy property, big trope Bay Beautiful. It is beautiful. I highly recommend people go check it out. And so I was just, I'm kind of enjoying the outdoors and reconnecting with, what I like. That's why I love my job is because I get to spend time outdoors. And so I did take this few months off, the next period. I had a break only for a month and that's because I ended up taking, a job as an environmental chemist. That was kind of my in between fill. Which was still stuff that I enjoyed, but not exactly like, uh, I was like, oh, I like ecology, but then I'm like going into like water and mineral management, like kind of testing and stuff. So it was different. And that's kind of how I filled my, my downtime. But yeah, so I had like a, a month of looking for jobs, constantly being like, where am I gonna go next? Uh, cuz I wanted to have something in between and then that popped up right away. And. I was fortunate to do that. And yeah, that's kind of my, two times in between contracts.

Kandyce 16:21

Awesome. Yeah, it's good to be able to stay busy during those times.

Alex 16:28

And the fact that you're able to land a job as an environmental chemist, like I'm sure that, yeah, that helped. Like I used to bartend in between like totally, totally unrelated to everything. Well, that's awesome.

Lexi 16:38

Yeah, it was an experience as well. I think it was different because it's like private sector and I hadn't really, experienced a job that was like, we're doing everything for the client and we need to have these samples done. We had samples that. within 24 hours, you wouldn't be able to detect whatever chemical you were looking for. So you are getting those done that day and you're not leaving until they're done. So it was a very interesting, job to be in. But yeah, I think definitely my background in school and, working in that lab, in Germany definitely helped me land that, which was nice. But, uh, I haven't, I haven't had to bartend yet. I'm thinking, well, you never know when that might come up again, that So, but, that's a pretty good school to have, I think as well.

Kandyce 17:35

Yeah. And seeing the lab side of things is probably useful now in your current position as well. I know a lot of people bartend in between. I definitely also did that. I served. But the tips. The tips, you can't

Lexi 17:52

Yeah, I think that's the hard part with some of these jobs in our sector, they aren't as funded as well as, maybe they could be. And then, you know, it's easier to take a, another job in a different field, such as bartending, but I think that's also equally as valuable because you're gaining other skills, especially social interaction skills, which is a, a big thing anywhere at any workplace. And so a customer service as well. I have never had to do a full on customer service position. Uh, I definitely see a difference in my response. I have a con compared to people that are well manicured in the service and industry.

Alex 18:37

That's funny. You must miss it too. Candace's just like leaving cash in hand every single day.

Kandyce 18:42

Oh, so much. Yeah. Okay, our next question. What is your favorite part of your job?

Lexi 18:52

I think my favorite part of my job is just to be outdoors in nature, but not only that, I also get to go to places that people have never really been before. So, and part of that, Being able to drive a Marsh Master and you just head right on into the center of the swamp where no one can walk and boats can't go cuz it's thick vegetation. And then you're just out there and you're just thinking, I don't think there's been a human here ever, honestly. And I'm just like, that's, that's really cool. No one else is gonna see this landscape again unless it's me driving back. So I've really, uh, I've really enjoyed that and just taking time to like look around and be like, wow, this is very beautiful and, uh, people won't get to experience this. So I feel very fortunate in that way.

Kandyce 19:47

Yeah, it's an awesome perspective. This one time I got to go out on the March master with Lexi and You're just surrounded by Marsh y You never get that. Like, I've never had that perspective ever. Like you can be in a kayak in a marsh, but you're never up above the marsh. Looking at everything around you and from in the seat is also extremely cool.

Alex 20:11

So the flip side to that, I guess, would be, what's your least favorite aspect of your job?

Lexi 20:18

I'd say washing the equipment that would be take to the marsh. Uh, cleaning thick mud out of tracks of machines is incredibly challenging. So we do a clean equipment, protocol where we make sure we're not transferring invasives between sites, but cleaning out a tanks tracks are quite an effort. and you definitely needed a power washer and then you got it everywhere in your hair. It's like, it just, yeah. At the end of the day you're like, okay, it's time to shower. Then you're like, wait a minute. Why is there mud everywhere? The other part of being an biologist, is that you cannot unsee the invasives Now that you know how to identify them, they are everywhere. And I'll just be trying to enjoy a nice, peaceful hike. And then I'll look down and there will be frag at the bottom of a hill, and I will be like, I want to remove it so badly. But you can't, and you have to continue on, and you're just like, oh my gosh. But yeah, so sometimes makes, Recreational outings, less enjoyable because it's just like you can't shut it off. Once you have the identification skills, you're seeing it everywhere. So that's probably my other least favorite thing but you know, when you enter an area that's pristine, you really appreciate it. You're like, wow, no one has disturbed this, or people have been taking care of it. This is beautiful. That is very rare to find but still. So yeah, that would be a downfall that I can't turn off like invasive.

Alex 22:10

I don't know why, but I'm imagining you like on a hike and all your friends are like, where's Lexi? And they turn around and you're just like kicking the absolute hell at some garlic, mustard,

Kandyce 22:22

garlic. I'm like, oh yeah, I can relate Why is where, why isn't she keeping up? And I'm like, I'm sorry.

22:37

too Good.

Kandyce 22:39

I guess for the next question, were there any memberships or experiences as a kid that you think might have sparked your interest in an environmental career? And if not, what do you think sparked your interest in an environmental career? Have you always wanted to be a biologist?

Lexi 22:58

Uh, yeah. This would've been part of my long wind story of my career trajectory. I've had many, jobs that I wanted as a kid and none of them were, uh, environmental sector, job I don't know. As a kit, we did camping and I did girl guides and just did a lot of outdoor activities. I grew up, outside of London and so hanging out on my friend's farms. but I never was like, yeah, this is what I wanna do. I just enjoyed it in my spare time. And then also sports, such as rowing, I just loved being out on the water, but I was never like, yeah, this is, that's what I wanna do. So when I entered university, I actually took biochemistry and I wanted to be a doctor. And then what changed my mind was I took a first year environmental class at Trent Introductory, and I just loved it, And then I was like, why am I not taking this as all my classes? You know, I'm like, I'm not enjoying doing biochemistry, but I really freaking love that environmental science class. So, I was like, oh, I'm gonna do environmental chemistry cuz I still loved chemistry. But then I took an ecology course in second year and I was like, this is it. This is what I needed in my life. And since then, I think that's really where I pivoted fully and I wanted to be involved in conservation biology and that's why I applied to do that internship in Germany, cuz I wanted to get some field work experience. And yeah, so that's, uh, definitely, it wasn't until university that I was like, wow, conservation biology, this is it. And I definitely struggled feeling like I was behind cuz there was other kids that had known this is what they wanted. So they had all these ID skills and they were like, oh, I, I've been volunteering here and there and, and I had done all this and I was like, What, is that what, I dunno. I dunno what I'm doing. I love, I love it, but I was like, I felt so inexperienced. But, it definitely hasn't hindered me. I feel like I've reached for a lot of other opportunities, since that pivotal moment in my second year of university. And yeah, I'm just, I got into the fields, and, stick in here. I think for a while. I was gonna

Alex 25:36

say, it seems like you're doing well for yourself and you got to travel and work all over. So you're, you're doing something right.

Lexi 25:42

I'm doing something right. I quite figured out what it is myself, but, uh, people seem to like me in certain roles and they, and then they're like, oh, maybe she could do this. And then that's where I go next. So

Alex 26:00

Yeah. That's great. If you could go back and have like a sit down conversation with yourself, either in these times where you were kind of like career flipping or finding new passions or between contracts, do you have any like, advice you'd give yourself?

Lexi 26:18

My, I don't know. I, I would say don't be so hard on yourself. I know, uh, in this field sometimes it's easy to feel defeated, you know, when there's lots of seasonal work and then that contract ends and you necessarily can't jump into the next thing. A lot of the time it's really about luck and timing that you're gonna find something. Um, so just keep your eyes open and always be looking you never know when that dream job's gonna pop up on a, on a job board. And so I just think staying engaged that way and don't be disheartened and also, Volunteering with certain conservation, organizations. I definitely missed out on that in my, early university years. And even later, I was heavily involved in the rowing community at Trent University as well. And so that took up a lot of my time. And I feel like being able to reach out with local organizations and uh, doing more environmental things would've really helped. And not even just like worrying about building your resume or portfolio, but to help, yourself tailor where you're interested in pursuing. Cause when you go into environmental science or biology, like people are always like, oh, Lexi, what kind of job do you want? And I. The field is massive and you won't know what you want until you do that volunteer experience or you do that job experience and then you'll be like, either this is for me or it's not. And so being able to volunteer in between, I think, definitely helps you kind of figure out more what you wanna move towards.

Kandyce 28:01

Yeah. Or find a position that you get to dabble in a little bit of everything. Yeah. Environmental field's. So big

Lexi 28:09

so huge.

Kandyce 28:10

Ooh, you probably have an answer for this one. What is the strangest or wildest thing that you've ever found in the field?

Lexi 28:18

Ok. Well, I do, and I, whether you wanted to include this or not, I don't know, but I always, this sounds good. Yeah. Memes about biologists. Talking about skat. and, and this is gonna be a story about Skat I was working, on a property and we came across coyote sc and lo and behold, I'm just looking at it and I'm like, am I seeing this right? There was an entire chipmunk. It was fully intact in the scat, like it was fur whole body together, but it had passed through that digestive system. Wow. I, I was literally like, anyway, of course I'm taking photos and I'm sending it to my other friends. He's like, oh my gosh, look at what I saw that, oh gosh. I just was like, how did none of this get digested or protested in any way? But it was like the full body of a chipmunk. And I was like, that's crazy. And then the other thing I just reminded me now, we were on a whipper whale survey and we found a chicken randomly and they, they panic in the dark. I didn't realize they fully panic. They become immobile. So this thing couldn't. And on our way to deliver it to the neighboring farm, it ended up not being their chicken the farm when we're walking with this chicken in our hands cuz it's paralyzed. We come across a toad and I'm sorry, have you ever, there was a crazy, is this like

Alex 30:12

a, does a bear shit in the woods kind of thing? Does a toad poo

Lexi 30:16

No, but honestly I had never seen a toad poo before. I didn't own, I didn't own hers as a kid. I know this is all, this is all, this is all scat related. This is too much. But uh, it was a toad pooing and I was like, it was crazy. Yeah. Thing to watch. And then we panicked him cuz we were walking towards him and

30:39

it was not, it was,

Alex 30:42

and your chicken in hand for all of this.

Lexi 30:44

Yes. Chicken in hand. There's a chicken in hand. And this toad's hopping away while he is. Pooping and it was like, it was whoa, So yeah, that's, I think that's my, my

Kandyce 31:02

Those are awesome answers. that was free to include either or. I don't know.

Lexi 31:09

Not everybody wants to hear about animal poo, but those are my, strange and weird stories I had.

Kandyce 31:16

So yes. In peace. Little buddy

Lexi 31:22

Yeah. Alright. Alvin has moved on.

Alex 31:26

R ip, little chipmunk. Oh, that's sad. Um, I don't really have a good segue for this, but, um, what advice do you have for someone's application to stand out when applying for these contracts?

Lexi 31:43

I guess, you wanna, at least carefully look at, the qualifications they're looking for in job applications, and then I look at the different experience I've had and what one will tailor specifically to each qualification. So, like I said, it doesn't even have to be something that's directly related to the field, but, you know, like, oh, if I was working in a service industry, being like leadership skills you got there, or communication skills that you earned in those roles. You also put that in your resume. You definitely tailor to what they've written on their own page and what they're looking for. I, I also have quite a few certifications that I've done over the years and so mentioning ones that, go well with what they're looking for in skills-wise is also something, and yeah, highlighting your relevant experience for sure when you're applying is, uh, yeah, really beneficial.

Alex 32:43

What, certifications did you go for that you found helpful?

Lexi 32:47

So in the stewardship line of work, when I was in University Arei Society of Ecological Restoration, had a chainsaw horse and so I found that was very useful. Also having first aid and I also had wilderness for aid. which is good for remote jobs. They always appreciate that you like, have a different, skillset set on that front or like a way of thinking, because first aid when you're near an urban center is usually like, make sure they're breathing, call an ambulance. But when you're in a remote setting, it's like, okay, what's the best option to keep this person alive? But we still need to be able to move them. So yeah, so those are both, really valuable courses that I got early on and I found made a difference in my application, in our work as well. We also get exterminator licenses so that we use, herbicide in some applications. It's just part of the invasive species world when they take over. So, uh, incredibly well. so in order to get rid of those huge monocultures, when you're doing an integrated pest management program, you have to use herbicide sometimes. So that certificate, I feel has also really bolstered my application for stewardship placements. For sure. The chainsaw for the wilderness first aid, those were really useful. And I don't know, there's so many more I want to get It's always ever growing. I know. Yeah. Benthic monitoring. I don't have that, but I know that's can be valuable in a lot of, ecosystem health assessments.

Kandyce 34:32

Yeah, I have mine, but I've never actually used it in a, like, employable setting only in like volunteer in school settings. But yeah, that's definitely a really popular one. Um, if you had to get only one spray license, what do you think would be the most valuable one? That's a hard question. You don't have to answer that if you don't want to. Uh, I guess it, I guess it depends, uh, what, ecosystem you wanna work in. Uh, well, there's aquatic. I have my aquatic vegetation license. I also have an industrial license, which is for more, um, public, public areas and roadside. And then I also have a landscape license, which is also kind of like public private lands, but I would say, so if you're doing, aquatic ecosystems, then aquatic vegetation, there's also people that do an aquatic license for mollusks and fish and lamp pr. But that's, if you wanna go into fishery systems, that's definitely valuable. if not the aquatic vegetation. And then if you are just doing the on land environmental, I would say forestry is super good because landscape, you're only limited to a certain size of forest. Yeah. And then you're no longer able to, so yeah.

Alex 35:52

I honestly have no idea there were differences in licensing. I thought you just did a sprayer course and then you could just have at everything. I didn't know there was like different branches.

36:02

I wish. There's a lot of differences.

Lexi 36:05

Yeah, there's a lot, there's way more you can get aerial, structural licenses. There's, there's quite a few categories and within those categories there's different licenses as well. So

Alex 36:19

Ariel would be a cool one that's, I didn't even, again, I didn't, I didn't even know that existed.

Kandyce 36:24

Yeah. So a lot of, if it farmers want to, spray their fields from a plane, they need an aerial license.

Alex 36:31

Uh, that makes sense.

Lexi 36:32

So we do use a aerial application, for the, huge water patches. Um, a and so we do Nina a, a helicopter pilot that is licensed in, aerial, pesticide application. So

Kandyce 36:46

Very cool. What is an example of positive change that you're hoping to create?

Lexi 36:51

Well, I like the feel of, conservation biology for the reason that you're kind of always working towards a positive change. But for me, I just really love educating people that are not in our field, and the reason for that is, in order for us to really make change and continue to protect, the native ecosystems that we all enjoy, is to inspire that love in other people. If people don't care about something, they're not gonna wanna protect it. They're not gonna wanna dedicate time to it. So the most positive change I wanna make is trying to get more people to fall in love with nature. The way that a lot of us biologists are, we're like crazy, for it. But, you know, just like trying to encourage people to go outdoors and connect and, you know, when I took an ornithology course and then I could identify the birds in my backyard, I was like, whoa, I'm seeing this world in a whole new way. and I just really wanna give other people that feeling where they could be like, oh, you know what, that's a white oak. Why do I know that? Because I hung out with these biologists and they told me why it's a good species, you know? And just like, yeah, if we're, we're moving towards, while we're even living in a time where, you know, we, it's important to protect natural areas, with climate change and decreases in biodiversity. And so just getting people to wanna go outside, I wanna learn about nature is something that I really hold close to my heart and really wanna. getting people involved. And so I have a little social media that I do I just love being able to tell, like show my friends what I'm seeing. And so that's why I kind of got into the nature photography so that I could then post a photo and be like, this is the species I'm talking about. I saw it in real life, so you can too, you know? And then why is this species awesome? And so, yeah, I think that's like the biggest change I hope to make. I also hope to give habitat to important native species and protect endangered ones, but I think in order to do that, we really need to get the general public on board. And so making them also love nature is what my main goal is.

Kandyce 39:21

That's an amazing answer. I love it.

Alex 39:24

Yeah, that's a great one. If someone wanted to get involved with N CCC or learn more about what you do, where should they go?

Lexi 39:32

So Nature Conservancy canada.ca, we have a lot about our, a mission and our values. And then we also have a lot of conservation volunteer events planned coming up, just across the organization as a whole, and they're posted on that site. And so there's some really cool ones that I know that I run. There's some grassland prairie, initiative and then, I ran a garbage cleanup, not, that's not glamorous, but there's those kinda events on there as well. And so I think it's a really good way to, connect with people in your local area, across Canada and just figure out a little more about what our organization's all about and what each job kind of entails. It's a nice way to network, but also not a lot of pressure on you when you're there at a conservation volunteer event. So you're just having fun being out in nature with other people who like to do the same.

Kandyce 40:27

Yeah. Awesome.

Alex 40:28

Well, thanks so much for sitting down with us today.

Kandyce 40:31

Thank you so much for tuning into Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity. How do I do this? An environmental queer podcast.

Alex 40:38

Be sure to follow us on social media and our website using the handle EL number four, biodiversity to get the latest news on upcoming events and other exciting opportunities.

Kandyce 40:47

We can't wait for you to tune in to our next episode.