My name is Herbie Duber and I am a junior at Pomona College in Claremont, California. I'm twenty years old and I was born, and still live in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. At school, my studies have focused mainly on the sciences. My concentration is in chemistry with an emphasis in biochemistry, and I am also a pre-med. major. I also like sports and play varsity baseball at school.

I decided to go on the School for Field Studies center for rainforest studies program for several reasons. To begin with, it sounded like a great experience. I cannot imagine many things that could compare with spending three months in the a tropical rainforest in Australia with thirty other students. Secondly, although I am not an environmental studies major, and at this point I do not intend to go into any type of career that deals specifically with the subject of ecology, I am very interested in learning more about these subjects. Specifically, I am interested in the possibilities that the rainforests hold and the way in which these regions can influence our everyday lives. As far as medicine goes, there is a lot of talk that promising new medications could someday come from the rainforest. However, with the current rate of destruction the promise of these vast resources seems to dwindle daily. Hopefully, by learning more about the rainforests and reforestation efforts we can curb the destruction, educate, and make full use of the rainforests while preserving these great treasures.