In the last year, the Trump Administration has cut or frozen approximately 7,800 research grants, and removed 25,000 scientists and personnel in federal agencies overseeing research, amounting to a reduction of $32B in investment, according to the peer-reviewed scientific journal Nature.
The Marine Biology Club at Columbia High School has taken note and is doing something about it — starting with a bake sale.
“During our club, we mainly give presentations informing our club members on the current climate issues involving the oceans, including ocean acidification, biodiversity loss, plastic pollution, and overfishing. We also give mini lessons on the immense biodiversity in the marine ecosystem, including coral species, fish species, mammals, and all sea plants,” said club founder and president Nicola Suraci, a junior at CHS who hopes to pursue a major in Biology in college.
Marine Biology Club Vice President Adyn Balian (on the left), and President Nicola Suraci (on the right). “Adyn Balian helped me make this happen, and is a passionate Marine Biology enthusiast,” said Suraci.
Suraci reported that the club’s 15 members are passionate about Marine Biology and education, and are currently “extremely concerned” about federal funding cuts for marine research organizations and key marine programs, including the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and the IOOS (Integrated Ocean Observing System).
“I was interested in starting to have the club fundraise for one of these programs, to not only donate, but send a message that our generation cares about the future of marine life, and our planet,” Suraci told Village Green.
The CHS Marine Biology Club chose to raise funds for the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
“When choosing Scripps, we were drawn to the fact that they’re performing research in finding chemical compounds at the bottom of the ocean, which may be used in treatments for breast and ovarian cancers,” explained Suraci. “Trump has completely cut funding for this essential research, and we are outraged.”
The club hopes to raise awareness as well as funds. Said Suraci, “If people actually understood the importance of marine research, they would participate more in our cause to fund it, or at least encourage the government to begin funding it again with public pressure.”
