Submitted by the Haida Gwaii Higher Education Society--We are very excited to welcome another vibrant group of university students to the islands, coming from all corners of North America; as far away as the southern US and as near as Masset. You may have spotted them over the past few weeks, possibly while riding their bikes to class wearing lots of reflective gear. Or perhaps you ran into us during our 'Island Tour' a few weekends ago when we visited almost all of the communities in one whirlwind day, including a blustery stop at Tow Hill. The Haida Gwaii Semester students will be here until April, focusing much of their time and energy on the study of the social, economic, cultural and ecological aspects of natural resource management. They've already completed the first of five courses, History and Politics of Resource Management, as part of the UBC-accredited Haida Gwaii Semester in Natural Resource Studies. This class has heard from such local educators as Diane Brown, Chief Gaahlaay, Ernie Gladstone, Leonard Munt, Guujaaw and several others. Over the next two and a half months we will be inviting many more Islanders into the classroom and the field, to join the discussion on issues of resource management.Our first HGHES Speakers Series took place recently, a well-attended event titled 'Meet the Students' featuring a cross-section of the 2013 class. Haawa to all who attended and to everyone who has made this group of individuals feel so welcomed. We look forward to hosting more evenings of engaging and interactive discussion on a topic related to each of the Haida Gwaii Semester courses. To mark the end of the Semester on April 12, the students will present their research on a particular Haida Gwaii case study at our Final Symposium. Stay tuned for more details, or join our Haida Gwaii Semester Facebook page to keep informed of these and other fun events.Since our start in 2010, every semester has been lucky enough to include local students. For those of you attending post-secondary (or with friends and family away at school), don't forget to consider the option of studying at home for a semester while earning 15 transferable, upper level university credits - and an opportunity to experience university in a new and meaningful way. Check us out: www.haidagwaiisemester.com!