Radford University
IN-24: Innovation A

The Radford Amazonian Research Expedition (RARE) provides undergraduate students with a unique opportunity to conduct original research in a primary Amazonian rainforest ecosystem. Students spent three weeks learning and exploring deep in the Peruvian jungle. Members of the RARE team travel from Radford to Puerto Maldonado, a rapidly growing city near Peru’s eastern border. In Puerto Maldonado, the team meets with guides from a conservation and ecotourism group devoted to the protection and conservation of the Peruvian jungle. From there the RARE team travels eight hours to reach the remote Las Piedras Biodiversity Station where they conduct their studies. Throughout the several weeks spent in and around the Las Piedras Station, members of the RARE team conduct multiple original scientific studies that the students themselves work to design and prepare during the preceding semester. Their research focuses on a wide variety of topics related to exploration of this all but unmapped jungle ecosystem, such as the impact of deforestation on microbial metagenomics, analysis of the antibacterial and antifungal properties of rare plants, cataloging of newly discovered species, and tracking and behavioral studies of megafauna including tapir, jaguars, macaws and monkeys. In addition to their independent research, RARE students have the opportunity to explore the forest and river, learn from local guides and study under Radford’s expert faculty. They encounter rare and endangered species, visit local markets, see the impact of deforestation first hand, and hike and study in a truly one of a kind place.