This quilt depicts the altered interactions between Great Lake fish species and their surrounding environment due to climate change. Three main ecological concepts are present in this quilt: northward range shifts, changes in the strength and duration of lake stratification, and the temperature-oxygen squeeze experienced by cold water fish. Cold and cool water fish are shifting their ranges north to continue living in their optimal water temperature while warm water fish are expanding into waters they previously were unable to occupy due to warming temperatures.

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Sometimes I'll see reporters on the news describing a hurricane while apparently standing in the middle of it. I've always thought that these reporters had to be pretty fearless -- often, in the background, trees sway violently and waves crash against seawalls. This scene is so much more tame when watching it from the comfort of my home, hundreds of miles from where it's being recorded. It's easy to distance myself from the event and move on to something else.

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This piece symbolizes the devastating effects of coral bleaching I learned in my freshman Earth Science class, where rising ocean temperatures cause corals to expel their algae, leaving them white and disrupting marine ecosystems. Fascinators, with their intricate and eye-catching beauty, seemed like the perfect medium to show the vibrance of coral reefs.

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