Matthew Cottone, a 6th-grade social studies teacher at Van Hoosen Middle School in Rochester Hills, will have his passport stamped again this summer.

He caught a flight heading to the Atlantic Forest along Brazil’s east coast as a fellow helping scientists with their research through the non-profit Earthwatch.

Earthwatch, founded in 1971, engages people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote and understand a sustainable environment.

Cottone will be conducting several different experiments in the forest, which spans parts of Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, during the six-day trip.

“I’ll be working with actual scientists, not just touring the forest,” he said. “The data will be used to help rejuvenate the forest itself and protect the animals and different species in the forest.”

The fellows will assist in setting live traps and camera traps. The small and medium mammals collected in the live traps will be weighed, measured, sexed, marked with ear tags, and released.

They will also help monitor the success of the reforestation effort and work directly on reforestation by processing seeds, weeding, or sorting seeds by species.

Cottone said he applied for several years and learned in May he was chosen for the fellowshp for this year’s trip along with eight other teachers from around the country. He is looking to bring the experience back to his classroom at Van Hoosen.

“A lot of these kids can’t travel outside of Rochester, let alone Michigan, so this is to show them just how big the world is out there and show them that they can make a difference,” he said. “One of the requirements is to create a unit of study, so I will definitely be bringing it back to the students.”

It has already been a busy summer for Cottone.

After being notified about his selection, he quickly got the necessary vaccinations. He chaperoned a field trip to France last month for a foreign language club at Rochester Adams High School, was home for three days then took his own 10-day vacation to California. He had two days back at home to pack his bags and get ready for South America.

“It has been a whirlwind summer for me so far,” he said. “But it is an honor to be chosen for this fellowship and it is one that I have always wanted to be to bring this unique experience back to my classroom.”

The Atlantic Forest is thought to have originally covered 390,000 to 580,000 square miles, but it has shrunk to a fraction of its original size. According to Earthwatch, only 11.6% of the natural vegetation cover remains and the forested areas still standing are extremely disconnected from one another.

Cottone is no stranger to earning fellowships.

Cottone and Ian Smith, his former student and a junior at Rochester Adams High School, researched Michigan soldier Auvergne “Abe” Breault’s life during a fellowship with the Albert H. Small Normandy Institute to study D-Day prior to the 80th anniversary of the landings in 2024.

He had been selected for six fellowships prior to the D-Day research.