Vanessa Mendez planned for a career in science by earning degree at UC Riverside
Gus Bahena, 05/San Bernardino National Forest
October 23rd, 2024
Science may have been one of our favorite subjects in school and perhaps continues to be. For one employee of the forest, science is more than an interest or pastime.
For Vanessa Mendez, botany resource specialist on the Front Country Ranger District of the San Bernardino National Forest, science is a career. She uses her education and training in biology and plant biology to recommend and implement improvements to the forest with projects and during and after wildfires.
Mendez is a native Southern Californian and earned her biology degree, with a minor in plant biology, at the University of California, Riverside. She transferred to the university from Crafton Hills Community College.
What inspired her to study biology?
Vanessa Mendez standing outside in front of a solar panel array.
Photo Credit: Gus Bahena, Forest Service“I just liked the natural sciences,” Mendez said. “I really like nature and science. It’s really fascinating to learn about our natural world and things like that. This is what interests me, this is what I want to do.”
She found a seasonal position with the Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Research Station in Riverside working as a lab assistant and had a positive experience.
“I enjoyed it so much,” Mendez said. “I enjoyed the people who worked there, because they loved their job. They are relaxed, down to earth people.”
After her term ended, she worked at UC Riverside as a lab assistant for a citrus quarantine facility.
Returning to the Forest Service and contributing
Mendez then looked for, and applied to, a natural resource specialist position and was hired. She started working for this forest in September 2023.
She has been active in the year she’s been here serving on her district and working on two fires, the Vista and Line.
One of her current projects is to use a micro-grant she was awarded from the Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Region to eradicate non-native invasive plants from a solar panel site. The clean energy site is a net exporter of electricity used to offset electric bills for the west side of the forest. In addition, a native pollinator garden will be installed.
On fire incidents, she has served on the teams for Resource Advisors and Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER). Forest Hydrologist Noel Ludwig has worked with Mendez on both teams and values her abilities with geographic information systems (GIS) and mapping. He stated she has good skills and produces quickly, which is a good combination for the teams.
Travis Mason, Front Country recreation officer and member of the BAER team for the Line Fire, said the district is lucky to have her on its staff. He reiterated Ludwig’s sentiment about her savviness in GIS and said she is super dedicated to her botany resource on the forest. She is a great team member and is also a very good communicator about her subject matter, Mason stated.
Mendez’s advice for aspiring science practitioners
Mendez’s recommendation for high school and college students in the fields of natural science is to reach out to local resources and look for volunteer opportunities. She explained that connecting with organizations and their members is key for finding a prospect to serve.
“There are so many people, that you will find a job you didn’t know existed – just by meeting someone and talking to them about what they do,” Mendez said. “And there’s always opportunities to work in either volunteer events or some sort of seasonal or part-time employee with an organization like the Forest Service.”
Thank you Vanessa for the encouraging words and for your service to our forest and our communities!