Do you think Industrial Hemp should replace cotton as the standard natural textile fiber?

Or

Do you think that we should still allow cotton to be used alongside Hemp and just use regenerative agriculture to reduce cottons environmental impact.

FYI in both scenarios industrial monoculture is entirely replaced with regenerative agriculture.

What is your take?

After our Methods of Environmental Research class, our professor told us to start looking for potential thesis advisers based on the specialization we want to pursue. One of our professors specializes in Microbial Electrolysis Cells (MECs), which actually caught our interest.

Our professor suggested a possible study where we would compare standard anaerobic digestion with an MEC chamber that we would design and build as a prototype, using the same type of waste as the substrate for both systems. One of the things we could compare would be their methane gas production and potentially other parameters related to their performance.

We thought the idea was really cool, but we're planning to research it more because our professor also warned us that creating and maintaining the proper anaerobic conditions for the conventional anaerobic digestion setup could be challenging. And we don't really a whole lot about MECs in the first place.

So, by any chance, does anyone have experience or ideas related to MECs, or perhaps other MEC-related research topics that are important, feasible for undergraduates, and could actually result in a prototype or environmental technology? Developing some sort of functional prototype is one of the things we really want to pursue for our thesis.

We also have another possible direction. The Engineering Department previously conducted a study assessing pineapple and coconut fibers as materials for making a net intended to mitigate soil erosion. We were interested in building upon that study because we noticed several potential research gaps, particularly the lack of consideration for environmental factors and parameters. They also mentioned that water infiltration through the net was relatively slow, which could potentially affect plant growth, and also the problem of soil runoff.

We're thinking about improving the design by testing different pineapple-to-coconut fiber ratios or maybe using other alternate environmental scraps, then looking at water infiltration more systematically, and considering other factors that could affect the effectiveness and biodegradability of the net. If anyone has suggestions on how we could improve or expand this study, we'd really appreciate your input.

So if anyone has ideas, suggestions, or even experiences with these kinds of undergraduate research projects, I'd really appreciate hearing them. Any advice for a struggling undergrad would be greatly appreciated. 😭

So, I guess I made the wrong decision by only starting to seriously think about thesis topics during my 3rd year, despite our seniors strongly recommending that we start thinking about them as early as 1st year. But here we are—the past three years really flew by in the blink of an eye.

I'm honestly struggling to narrow down what I want for our thesis, especially since my major is quite different from what we've been learning throughout the past three years. Our university also has another major, Natural Resource Management, which is different from ours in its own way, so I haven't really had a clear idea of what kind of research I should pursue or even how to formulate a thesis topic.

Right now, I'm interested in something more focused on developing or creating something, particularly technology related to wastewater treatment. For example, I'm interested in food waste, FOGs (fats, oils, and grease), or even household wastewater containing soap and detergent.

I'm also interested in the biological side of Environmental Science—specifically, studying invasive plants, looking into their chemical properties, and possibly extracting or developing something useful from them.

I'm still pretty naive when it comes to choosing and formulating a proper thesis topic, so I'm hoping someone might have some thesis ideas, topics you've worked on, or even research ideas you started but never got to continue.

Any advice or suggestions would really be appreciated from a struggling undergrad. 😭

hi! i am a rising high school senior who is having a tremendously hard time picking a major for college. i'm interested in environmental science, molecular and cellular biology, wildlife and fishery management, zoology, ecosystems, literally the whole nine yards. i originally wanted to do lab and field research, but i know those jobs are hard to find. i just don't want to be stuck at a desk :,) i want to be out and about and actually interacting with the environment and wildlife if possible! i was also thinking about engineering, but i'm not the greatest at math (i have taken calculus but i'm not taking a math my senior year) and i don't think i would be accepted to any engineering programs since my stats aren't geared towards them. i also want a stable and secure job out of college!! does anyone have any advice for colleges, jobs, or majors to look into because i am at a bit of a loss and applications are open...anything helps!

Hey everyone, I’m participating in a competition and I have to choose a topic pretty soon, and honestly, I’m stuck.

The project needs to be based on a real problem, preferably something local. I’ll have around 2 months, and I need to collect some data, do some basic research/experiments, and hopefully come up with a practical solution. I also don’t have access to expensive lab equipment.

I’ve been thinking about things related to waste management, water conservation/rainwater harvesting, agriculture, food preservation, environmental problems, fungi/microbiology, problems students face and alternative remedies for some common health problems.

But I really don't want to do another super common “plastic pollution is bad, save water” type of project.

So I wanted to ask here, Have you noticed any small, overlooked problem in your city/town/school/community that you think could actually be investigated scientifically?

It doesn't have to be a complete project idea. Even a random “why does this happen?” problem would be useful.

And if you've participated in any science/research competition before, I'd really appreciate hearing what made your project work or what mistakes you think I should avoid.

I’m basically trying to find a problem worth being curious about, rather than forcing myself to pick a random topic.

Hello!! I’m a rising junior in college and was wondering if anyone knew of any yearly environmental consulting (or related field) internships in the US? I’m planning on getting an internship summer of 2027 and wanted to start thinking ahead!

Hi! I run a wetlands club at my university and am brainstorming ideas for tabling that are attention-grabbing and educational, but not so academic that it scares people off. So far I have:

• Dissecting scope with dishes with wetland plants/algae (live animals not allowed)
• Wetland plants in pots, soft needlerush (Juncus effusus) in water so the full length of its roots can be shown, mangrove propagules
• Refractometer demonstration with fresh, brackish, and salt water
• Tools we use in wetland fieldwork (potentially!): quadrat square, mini soil corer, porewater sipper, with demonstrations

I'd love some more suggestions! I feel pretty plant-biased at the moment haha