Mananjo Jonahson has traveled half way around the world on a Fulbright Junior Staff Development Program scholarship to study aquatic biology at SUNY Brockport. But her long range plan is to return to her home of Madagascar to help conserve the island's ocean ecology and to educate the population about threats to its health. How will an understanding of the Great Lakes' freshwater ecology translate to the tropic marine environment surrounding Jonahson's home on the world's fourth-largest island? Jonahson notes that the methodologies, techniques and procedures learned here will easily transfer to a marine environment. Jonahson, who also studied in Great Britain for a year, will earn her master's degree from SUNY Brockport in biological sciences. Her thesis advisor, Joseph Makarewicz, PhD, professor of environmental science and biology said, "Mananjo brings a range of diverse experiences to SUNY Brockport. Having a student of her caliber raises the level of the classroom, laboratory and field experiences for everyone." Madagascar, with a population of 18 million people, lies in the Indian Ocean off the southeast coast of Africa opposite Mozambique. The world's fourth-largest island, it is twice the size of Arizona. October 30, 2005 |
