1 August 2008
Camilo Sanin
Universidad de Los Andes
Bogotá, Colombia
Dear Ambassador and Mrs. Jean Lane,
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you for creating the
Bill and Jean Internship Endowment, which supported my participation
in the Research Training Program (RTP) of the National Museum of Natural
History this summer. The RTP has given me life-changing experiences
and opportunities that very few Colombian undergraduate students are
granted, and I am certain it will influence my future research work.
Sharing time with renowned scientists has helped me grow not just as
a scientist, but as a person. It has also made my career goals clearer
and has steered me in the best direction to pursue them.
Colombia is a country with very large biodiversity and I have been
really fortunate to conduct fieldwork in my home country; that has nourished
my passion for biology during the last three years. However, this summer
has made me realize that museums and collections are essential for viewing
the bigger picture and that a day between cabinets could be as exciting
as a day in the rainforest.
For the ten weeks of the program, I worked in the Division of Birds
under the mentorship of Dr. Terry Chesser. We used tissue samples from
the museum's birds collection (and from a few other museums worldwide)
to reveal genetic variation within populations of a species of ovenbird
that occurs in the high Andes and Patagonia. This project will also
be presented at my home institution as my senior thesis.
Once again, thank you for allowing me to be part of this program.
I am convinced that future beneficiaries of this permanent endowment
will gain as much as I did.
Sincerely,
Camilo Sanin
Research Training Program
Class of '08
1 August 2008
Camilo Sanin
Universidad de Los Andes
Bogotá, Colombia
Dear Ambassador and Mrs. Jean Lane,
I would like to express my gratitude for your generous contribution,
which will allow me to attend the joint meeting of the American Ornithologists'
Union, Cooper Ornithological Society and Society of Canadian Ornithologists
in Portland, Oregon, from the 4th to the 8th August 2008. Attending
a professional meeting of this level is not a common opportunity for
an undergraduate student. It will be one of the largest ornithological
meetings ever, and many talks about avian ecology, behavior and systematic
will be held.
I will also be able to make contact with some of the most distinguished
scientist working on ornithology and will be able to talk to them not
only about their research but also about potential graduate school mentorship.
Once again, thank you so much for granting me the chance to assist
to this meeting which will certainly be of great importance for my career.
Sincerely,
Camilo Sanin
Research Training Program
Class of '08