Smithies (and Plants) In London: Introducing this Year’s Kew Interns

We are excited to introduce this year’s Kew interns for the upcoming summer of 2025: Abagail Coleman ’26 (left) and Emilia Neyer ’26J (right). These two Smithies have been working with the botanic garden in various roles–Neyer was a conservation intern in 2024 after being a curatorial work study student in the fall of 2023, and Coleman has been a part of the Botanic Garden Student Educator program for the past two years. 

The Kew internship program has been running since the summer of 1994, and provides Smith students with the opportunity to conduct plant research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in England. Funding for this internship experience comes from a generous endowment established in honor of Muriel Kohn Pokross class of 1934. Over the course of the 12-week internship, students work with Kew researchers on a wide range of projects, in subject areas such as molecular biology and conservation genetics. They also have the opportunity to co-author scientific publications that emerge as a result of their research. 

Both Neyer and Coleman are excited for their upcoming time in London. They shared an eagerness for their projects, the opportunity to live and work abroad, and the chance to gain valuable research experience at such a renowned garden. “I really love that the program blends exposure to plants with molecular approaches and genomics, because those are two areas that I’m really interested in," said Neyer. “My whole life I’ve been hearing about Kew as the premier botanic garden in the world… the opportunity to work there and be immersed in that really renowned place will be incredible.”

As both students are double majors (and therefore have lots of required courses), they appreciate the opportunity to study abroad outside of the academic year and feel that the Kew program will provide a strong marriage between their interests in going abroad and in biological research. “I love Smith so much and I want the chance to be here every semester,” Coleman shared. “To me this was the best of both worlds: I get to be working in a lab with plants and get to have a kind of study abroad opportunity.” She said she’s looking forward to checking off a visit to the Kew gardens from her bucket list; she visited London as a kid but didn’t get to see the gardens. 

Neyer, a biology and psychology major, will be working on a project titled ‘Habitat Restoration of Great and Little Tobago National Parks in the British Virgin Islands.’ “I think the project really dovetails nicely with my internship last year,” said Neyer. “I’m really excited about the prospect of continuing to work closely with habitat restoration projects, but in a totally different context and maybe with some new approaches and perspectives." 

Neyer was attracted to the internship because she wanted to expand her skills and venture into new areas of research, in addition to being abroad. “During my time at Smith I’ve done a lot of work with plant ecology, a lot of fieldwork, a lot of working with soil and root samples, and that’s been really cool, but I’m also really interested in molecular approaches and genomics, things like DNA analysis and extraction, and I haven’t gotten many opportunities to pursue that yet,” said Neyer. “The prospect of being able to get robust wet lab experience in a professional setting but still in the context of plants will be incredible.”  

Neyer is also looking forward to immersing herself into the culture of London and getting to enjoy living in a new place, as well as working with all of the scientists at Kew. “I’m really thrilled to pick their brains and be a part of that community,” she said.

Coleman, a biology and anthropology major, will be working on a project titled ‘Describing Genetic Diversity in the Red Helleborine, a Critically Endangered Species in England.’ “I am looking forward to working with researchers who have been doing this for a long time and are knowledgeable about the field,” said Coleman. “I’m really interested in starting to work on conservation genetics projects.” The project fits her passions well, and she thinks it will be a great building block for her future career. 

Coming into the internship with a different research background than Neyer, Coleman is excited about getting direct lab experience through the program. “Most of my experiences working with plants has been either in the educational context, working with Smith students or elementary-age students, or it has been in the field taking notes for researchers at Smith,” said Coleman.

"Getting the internship to Kew is kind of how I felt about working at the botanic garden when I came to Smith. It felt like a dream come true,” Coleman added. 

Coleman and Neyer encourage other students interested in participating in the program in the future to put themselves out there and apply.  “Just reach out to anyone and everyone,” said Neyer. “Advocate for yourself, express your interest and curiosity, and ask questions–and oftentimes opportunities will follow.”