Doni Nolan
Job: Greenhouse and Gardens Program Manager, University Sustainability, and PhD Student in Biosciences, College of Science
As an undergraduate, Doni Nolan, BA Biology ’14, had no visions of a future profession until she visited the greenhouse on George Mason University’s Fairfax Campus. “It was like a revolution in my life. Really, it was immediately so clear: This is what I want to do with my life,” she said. “This is everything I want. Soil, pots, a huge diversity of plants. I want to be a farmer.”
Favorite Part of the Job: The Presidents Park Hydroponic Greenhouse produces more than produce (at a rate of about 2,000 pounds a year for use in Mason’s kitchens by the chefs of food service provider Sodexo.) It also supports an academic purpose in giving volunteers and interns an introduction to the trade. “My favorite part is working with the students,” she said. “I love plants, for sure, that’s my passion, but if I just wanted to be a farmer I could work on a huge farm and run my own business. That’s lonely.”
Growing into the Job: Nolan began as a volunteer for the greenhouse with then manager Monica Marcelli, and at the Potomac Heights Organic Vegetable Garden. “I was that one student who would volunteer during finals when no one else would,” she said. She also helped revitalize the flagging student organization GMU Organic Garden Association (GOGA). “When I was president of GOGA I realized I’m a natural leader,” she said. She recruited new members just so she could teach more people about her passion. Before long, the Office of Sustainability hired her to be the unofficial Mason farmer.
Branching Out: Her biology degree and various horticulture certificates were just the beginning. Nolan also completed a master of science degree in plant science and pest management with a concentration in agriculture and life sciences via an online program offered by Virginia Tech. Now she is working on her PhD in biosciences at Mason and studying beneficial microbes that treat Pythium root rot disease in hydroponic systems. Her master's thesis on hydroponic microgreen production has thousands of downloads and a handful of citations from researchers around the world.
Building More: What started as a small garden club has since been turned into an entire program run by Nolan and her four part-time wage staff. Together, they manage an aquaponics system with fish in the greenhouse, the Innovation Food Forest by the Johnson Center and a pollinator garden for the honeybees. They even added plants to the Forensic Science Research and Training Laboratory, also known as the body farm at the Science and Technology Campus, to help with research being conducted there. The demand for sustainable landscaping and the need to address food insecurity are goals the Greenhouse and Gardens Program are committed to in the coming years, Nolan said.
Get involved and read more about sustainability at Mason by visiting green.gmu.edu.
This article originally appeared in the Mason Spirit magazine in a slighty different form.