{"id":34339,"date":"2026-08-20T09:26:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T16:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/?p=34339"},"modified":"2026-08-20T09:32:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T16:32:04","slug":"internships-bolster-restoration-at-lake-sammamish-state-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/2026\/08\/20\/internships-bolster-restoration-at-lake-sammamish-state-park","title":{"rendered":"Internships bolster restoration at Lake Sammamish State Park"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The University of Washington Bothell opened the Environmental Education & Research Center in 2022 at Saint Edward State Park in partnership with Washington State Parks. Since then, the center has become a site for the appreciation, research, study and stewardship of Pacific Northwest ecosystems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The center is headquarters for UW Bothell\u2019s Collaborative for Socio-Ecological Engagement, a University-led research and learning unit that hosts interdisciplinary and equity-centered place-based research and learning programs. The EERC also serves as a gateway that connects the UW Bothell community to partners beyond the park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And through one of CoSEE\u2019s latest partnerships, student interns took to the field to provide restoration support to Saint Edward\u2019s sister park: Lake Sammamish State Park. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A tale of two parks<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Located in Issaquah, Washington, Lake Sammamish State Park features 512 acres of forest, beaches and meadows. It is the second-most visited state park in Washington, frequented by visitors looking to swim, fish, bike and more. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The park is home to many of the same flora and fauna as its sister park \u2014 and many of the same restoration challenges and needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Helping to manage those needs is the nonprofit Friends of Lake Sammamish State Park. Much like CoSEE, the organization facilitates restoration projects and volunteer events for the park. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
CoSEE also involves student interns in its projects wherever possible, and many of its projects are even student-led. So FLSSP reached out to learn more about the collaborative and to see how a partnership might create more internship opportunities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In spring 2026, the nonprofit hosted its first three interns from UW Bothell. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe interns took on small projects that we, as a very small nonprofit, do not have the capacity to tackle,\u201d said Sarah Polster Tribble, FLSSP operations manager, \u201cincluding creating maps of our restoration areas and helping lead restoration events \u2014 projects we could only dream of doing one day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Savannah Greenwalt, who graduated from UW Bothell with a degree in Earth System Science in June, began her internship year supporting public-facing restoration events in Saint Edward State Park. When the opportunity came to work with FLSSP, she mentored another intern to cover her role while she transitioned to supporting the other park. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Comfortable with uncomfortable<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGetting to know both parks and the different ways they operate has been so cool,\u201d she said. \u201cI loved getting to connect with the people in both communities while restoring our local park environments.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nSavannah Greenwalt (Earth System Science ’26).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
But leading public events was not something Greenwalt was experienced in or felt at ease doing. From preparing sites the day before to leading day-of activities and engaging with volunteers, her role was a lot more people-facing than she was used to handling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs someone who grew up very introverted, I had to get comfortable with the uncomfortable,\u201d she said. \u201cThis was also a new field for me. I had never done restoration work before, but now I had to teach and lead groups of people.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the end, Greenwalt successfully led restoration events that included the removal of invasive species such as Himalayan blackberry, English holly and ivy, and supported other FLSSP events such as Spring into Adventure Fair and Walk n Wag. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis internship has given me so much experience \u2014 with restoration work, leadership and public speaking,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This internship has given me so much experience with restoration work, leadership and public speaking.”<\/p>Savannah Greenwalt, Earth System Science \u201926 <\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Maps of a new terrain<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
For his project, Max Davis created maps of the active ecological restoration sites at Lake Sammamish State Park, showing the locations and physical conditions of planted tree shrubs to help inform future efforts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
He already had experience mapping invasive species in Saint Edward State Park for one of his classes and was drawn to the internship as a chance to continue this work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDuring my internship work, I enjoyed spending time outside in the field the most because it was peaceful and made me feel connected to the landscape I was helping to restore,\u201d said Davis, a senior majoring in Conservation & Restoration Science and minoring in Geographic Information Sciences. \u201cThis experience required me to solve problems on my own, find new techniques for mapping and identify new plants, which will help me in my future career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOverall, I feel more prepared as an environmental scientist after interning with CoSEE.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Similarly, Aysha Siddiqui mapped past and current restoration sites and color coded them based on the organizations who worked on each site \u2014 helping to provide an idea of where further management and future restoration may be needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI am someone who enjoys seeing information in a visual way. Mapping the whole park and all the sites within it was a good way to visualize what the current ecosystem health is and where support is needed in the future,\u201d said Siddiqui, a senior majoring in Conservation & Restoration Science and minoring in Urban Planning and Design (at the UW in Seattle). \u201cThis was a park that I was familiar with and contributing to improving the ecological health of it felt more personal.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\t
![\"People](\"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/08\/LakeSamm2-768x1024.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/08\/LakeSamm3-edited.jpg\")
![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/08\/LakeSamm6-768x1024.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/08\/BoxMeadow-Invasive-1024x683.jpg\")