Abiodun Ilemobayo

While in school, I worked as a research intern at the Forest Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN), whose mission is focused on reducing the fruiting or maturity age of the indigenous tropical hardwood tree species. I carried out both sexual and asexual propagation, which were very useful for propagating the most endangered hardwood species in Nigeria. At this institute, I was also exposed to working with teammates and develop better interpersonal skills. In 2016, towards the end of the second semester in my final year at the university, I led a group of students to donate tree seedlings to rural farmers and educate them about forestry. In collaboration with other students, we further encouraged them to involve rural women in forestry activities. Also, I was actively involved in tree planting and tagging, one of the major activities during the Northern Africa Regional Meeting, organized by the International Forestry Students Association in 2016, themed: The Role of Tropical Rainforest in Livelihood Improvement and Climate Change Mitigation. lastly, I was fully involved in rotational community development service groups under Charity, Health, Environmental, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), and Anticorruption during my one-year compulsory National Youth Service at Ezeagu local government, Enugu State. We executed our duties at seven different communities successfully, and we were commended by each leader of the communities visited.