Gabrielle Biordi

Sometimes, you have to spend time doing what you don't love to find what you really do love. After completing my BA in psychology, I decided to take a year off from school to get some work experience and decide what kind of career I wanted. Six years later and no closer to that goal, I felt it was time to reexamine my academic interests. During my hiatus, I rediscovered my love for the natural world and the tiny many-legged organisms living right beneath our feet. I tore out our meager landscaping and replaced it with a pollinator garden, began planting milkweed to support monarch butterflies, and started an indoor monarch rearing operation to aid monarch research efforts. After accumulating a digital bug collection of over 200 native species (and counting), I went searching for entomology classes I could take online, and stumbled upon Project Dragonfly. The program felt like the most logical next step in my journey. Now, I'm looking to use my experience in psychology and research to educate the public about the importance of invertebrates, as well as help preserve the environment and the many fascinating organisms on our planet. I hope that this program will open doors to new opportunities, new resources, and new friends.