PELLSTON, Mich. — “I think heaven is a hammock on the edge of Douglas Lake.”
That’s the opening lyric to a song penned and performed by Isabel Gil, the 2024 science communications intern at the University of Michigan Biological Station, a more than 11,000-acre research and teaching campus in northern Michigan.
The 21-year-old Michigan-native from Ada, just outside of Grand Rapids, has worked in May, June and July along Douglas Lake in Pellston with Chrissy Billau, who leads UMBS marketing and communications, to tell stories about the students, scientists and research at the field station.
Gil will be a senior at U-M in the fall. She is double majoring in English and Program in the Environment (PitE), with a specialization in environmental writing and communication. Her minor is sustainability.
In honor of the end of Gil’s field season internship during the spring and summer terms, we’re proud to highlight her contributions to and experiences as part of our scientific community, both as a UMBS student taking courses in 2023 and working as a paid intern in 2024.
Q: Tell us about yourself and what led you to pursue science communication.
Though I was only 6, in 2009 I can vividly remember being presented with my first National Geographic. The “Ice Baby” issue was about a baby mammoth whose body was perfectly preserved for 40,000 years in the ice. She was rediscovered by an Indigenous Siberian reindeer herder, and then analyzed by University of Michigan scientist Dan Fisher. The piece was a captivating introduction to the powerful interaction between research, citizen science, and storytelling. Since then, I’ve been fascinated with the worlds of science and communication, and dream of using the two in tandem to translate pressing research to the wider public.
What’s more is that some of my first memories were made in northern Michigan. My grandparents live about an hour east of here in Rogers City, and though we moved around several times when I was growing up, northern Michigan remained a constant home. Now, as a PitE major—and also a biracial student with a disabled brother—I understand that there is still work to be done in exploring how we tell stories about science and research. I dream of forging a career in which I can use my experience and storytelling skills as windows and mirrors into the world of science, making information accessible to all people, while also highlighting stories within scientific communities that are historically underrepresented.
Q: This summer isn’t your first experience at the research and teaching campus along Douglas Lake. You took two courses as a student last year during the 2023 summer term. What is it about the University of Michigan Biological Station that left you determined to come back?
Last year, I was first introduced to UMBS as a student: I took Ecology Lecture with Dr. Mariano Rodriguez-Cabal, and Ecology Lab with Dr. Noelia Barrios-Garcia. Their classes and the overall experience were integral to my experience as a student at the University of Michigan. I gained invaluable research experience, and loved that every day, we got to live what we were learning. When I left UMBS last year, I had a gut feeling that I’d be back. And here I am! I am so passionate about the field station’s educational mission and research, and I’ve loved that my job allows me to translate this passion to the wider public. Returning in a professional capacity has been a dream.
Q: As the 2024 science communications intern at UMBS, you have an incredible attitude and work ethic, day in and day out, rain or shine. What do you do in your role and why do you believe it’s important?
As the science communications intern, I help tell stories about the amazing people and work of the UMBS community. This summer I wrote articles about ongoing research and scientists on campus, and followed various classes around northern Michigan, capturing photos and videos of their studies and projects along the way. I even helped piece together a series of historical UMBS photos and events that will be used in a permanent timeline installation as the campus undergoes renovations. I think science communication is integral to research and educational institutions because it puts everything into context. It translates hard science into stories that everyone can get excited about and understand. At the heart of UMBS is community, and SciComm is an extension of that—extending our community, our passion, our mission, beyond Pellston and across the globe.
Q: What was your most meaningful story you wrote or photo you shot or project that you shepherded during your internship? What makes it stand out?
I’ve loved all of the projects I’ve worked on this summer, but two stand out to me. I love the first article/video we published, detailing some research and field trips that a handful of spring classes were embarking on. It really captures the delightful balance of work and play that the Biological Station is all about. I also love the piece I did on UMBS’s Ethnobotany course. It was very powerful to learn with the class and from guest speakers like Steven Perry about Indigenous science, and how integral it is to pass these teachings on. From taking videos to drafting stories, editing with my boss Chrissy, to seeing the published product on the UMBS website—the process is electric. I’ve been so lucky to have the community’s support and Chrissy’s mentorship this summer.
Q: How have your experiences at UMBS informed your decisions about a career path? You’ll be a senior at U-M in the fall. What’s next and where do you hope to be in 10 years?
This position reaffirmed my passion for writing stories about science. I’ve had some experience in journalism and ran the U-M Museum of Natural History’s social media for a couple years in Ann Arbor. But this internship helped zero in on specifically the intersection of science and storytelling, giving me the opportunity to write longer-form stories about research and researchers in the community. As for the next 10 years—I dream of getting into a master’s program at the University of the West of England, and going on to storyboard and research for programs for the BBC’s Natural History Unit. I also know I’ll be continuing to write in a creative capacity—I dream of publishing a novel, or maybe some poems.
Q: What is your favorite thing to do at UMBS?
This is such a hard question. I love volleyball here, Saturday ice cream, and swimming in the lake. I love star gazing in the UV field. I also love picking peoples’ brains over breakfast. I’ve met so many science communicators, environmental writers, and eco-artists this summer. Each person has such fascinating nuggets of wisdom to share.
Q: You’ve immersed yourself in the UMBS community and made lots of friends, not only through work. You’re always one of the first on the floor for the Square Dance or taking the helm of the rope during tug of war and you sang a song in the Talent Show, an event which you also have emceed. Tell me about the UMBS community and the energy here on campus when students and researchers are not doing fieldwork or working in the lab.
I love this community, and this place is special because you can feel the community loving you right back. There’s an overwhelming sense of passion, curiosity, and innovation that translates beyond the work that we do, and into the play that we all get to experience together. The fact that we all get to work hard and play hard together creates a special kind of magic. You see this on the volleyball court, you hear it in the laughter that echoes from Pine Point to Grapevine, and it's evidenced by the fast and firm relationships that you’re able to form here.
Q: Back to the song you sang at the Talent Show. You wrote it. Would you tell me about your inspiration, and would you be willing to share the lyrics?
That opening line, “I think heaven is a hammock on the edge of Douglas Lake,” was a mantra that I frequently repeated during my time here last year as a student. My friends and I would spend our afternoons in “hammock city” near the beach. We’d be swaying in those hammocks, giggling and chatting, watching the sun shift across the sky, and I’d be hit by a feeling that I can only describe as divine contentment. That’s the cheesy but true feeling that I hope to bottle with this song. I played around with chords and nailed down that first verse and part of the chorus during the rest of July. But it wasn’t until I went home to Grand Rapids that the rest of the song fell into place. Everyone was so receptive and encouraging when I performed at the Talent Show, and I’m so glad I shared it with the community. It was such a special moment. I’d love to share the lyrics, and someday I even dream of recording it and making it available to stream in some capacity. Maybe that will be my fall project.
I think heaven is a hammock on the edge of Douglas Lake
where the light is filtered through the oaks that hold the bank
Where laughter rings as we climb and shift around
And the chorus sings as our feet all leave the ground
I think heaven is the tables that we push in dining halls
As we squeeze together promising there’s room for all
And it’s always crowded but I’ve never seen it full
If we run out of chairs there is always one to pull
And maybe I’ve met heaven, not a place but she’s a feeling
In my chest that bursts and colors the whole sky
In the song of swaying grasses and the promise of the loon
And the fading fickle sweet scent of sweet July
I think heaven is the water warming in the morning sun
It’s a dance on the court when the harder work is done
It’s the sand and the breeze through the vans and the trees and the sound of rain on tin
It’s the ache of growing up and growing in
And maybe I’ve met heaven, and she was the whole journey
The space between the stars and everything we’ve had to lose
In the prints of piping plover and the shadows of our memories
And every time my eyes reflected you
And maybe I’ve met heaven, not a place but she’s a feeling
in my chest that bursts and colors the whole sky
In the song of swaying grasses and the promise of the loon
And the fading fickle sweet scent of sweet July
Q: What will you miss most when the field season ends in northern Michigan and you return to Ann Arbor?
Besides heaven in a hammock? Definitely the pace of life. It’s that up-north attitude! Work here is busy, but days are the perfect blend of intentionality and whim. I’ll miss morning swims and prompt mealtimes with so many friends and colleagues. I’ll miss the beautiful sunsets and waking up to the loudest birds every morning.
Q: If there’s one thing you want a prospective student to know about UMBS, what would that be?
Only one?! I guess it would have to be go all in. You get out of this place what you put into it, so sing that song in the talent show, jump into the water with all your clothes on, ask why as often as possible, and sit with people at breakfast that you want to be just like when you grow up. This place is magic—let it change you.
Founded in 1909, the U-M Biological Station is one of the nation’s largest and longest continuously operating field research stations.
Laboratories and cabins are tucked into more than 10,000 acres along Douglas Lake to support long-term climate research and education.
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