Hello! My name is Sam Kochan, and I am a 4th-year Forestry and Wildlife major with a minor in Entomology. I have always been interested in working in wildlife and nature, but also working with people to improve environmental justice and understand how sociology can impact and can be impacted by the environment. Out of any wildlife, I love researching big cats and wild cats and their dynamics and behavior. I am from Kohler, WI, which is much smaller in comparison to Columbus, and going to such a large school has been a fun experience, especially with all of the research experiences. I am currently working as a research assistant for a project investigating wildfire protection plans in underrepresented communities.
I am interested in plants mostly due to their symbiotic nature with insects, and how they can be beneficial or detrimental to the health of certain species of insects. I am also interested in learning about how to identify flowers and plants for foraging reasons, as it would be good to understand the differences between poisonous and non-poisonous look-a-likes. I want to understand how to properly identify plants and know their uses, and in the long term I want to use this knowledge to make connections with entomological research.
