Zoo InternQuest is a seven-week career exploration program for San Diego County high school juniors and seniors. Students have the unique opportunity to meet professionals working for the San Diego Zoo, Safari Park, and Institute for Conservation Research, learn about their jobs, and then blog about their experience online. Follow their adventures here on the Zoo’s website! Hi! I’m Jennah, a high school senior with a love for the natural world. My passion for wildlife began when I was five years old, watching Zooboomafoo and getting out into nature whenever I could. I vividly remember the surreal experience of touching a manta ray for the first time, and feeling a connection to a world that was once unfathomable. Since then, my passion for wildlife has only grown, with visits to the San Diego Zoo being an essential part of this adventure. Last summer, I was given the opportunity to intern at the Birch Aquarium. It was there that I began to realize the dire state of our Earth, with plastic oceans, melting glaciers and species disappearing from our world forever. We were able to teach guests about the conservation stories of sea turtles, seahorses, kelp forests and much more, and this experience helped me find both personal and intellectual growth. I’m usually quite shy, but I hope to instill a similar passion for the environment in those I interact with everyday. I fill in my free time researching endangered species and ecology, and outside of exploring and learning about the outdoors, I enjoy reading historical fiction novels, writing stories, and playing the flute. Currently, I’m the Op/Ed editor of my school newspaper and am a part of the Academic League and Environmental Club at my school. I hope to pursue a career in environmental science or marine biology, and I know this internship is the next step on that journey. I’m very excited to discover more about our Earth and the ways that our precious species can be saved! Jennah Fall Session 2018