What Methods Did We Use?

The team completed the three project objectives through a series of tasks conducted remotely during the IQP term from March 24 to May 13. VNPA interview information dictated the questions asked in wetland conservationist interviews to identify water management and volunteer usage ideas. Then, technical research refined and narrowed these ideas to specific short-term and long-term solutions. Short term solutions are within the current resource constraints of the VNPA, and volunteers can complete them. Long term solutions are not necessarily within the current limitations of the park, but instead they are pathways for the VNPA or another project to pursue. The volunteer survey provided insight on activities volunteers are willing to do and the additional steps the VNPA might take to inform the volunteers of the water issues in the VNP. The results from each method factored into assessing feasible implementation of volunteer-based solutions by the VNPA to address the park’s falling water levels. The project members recognized that the government and general public surrounding the park were not directly approached given the timeline constraints of the IQP term, though results from the other methods provided insight on the perspective of these two groups. In the short two-month timeframe, the team and project collaborators did not find effective remote methods to reach these stakeholders. Given the health situation of the COVID-19 pandemic, the team executed the following methods remotely, which ultimately constrained the available resources to complete this project.