About Me

wTE8MjZDI earned my MA in Environmental Policy and Management at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. 

At MIIS I focused my coursework and internships on food systems (specifically sustainable and organic agriculture), conservation design and management, and how green businesses can efficiently create sustainable solutions to current problems. My experience in environmental education came in handy more often than expected when translating dense academic texts and government policy into materials the average person could understand and take action on. 

Summer of 2012 I worked on seafood traceability with FishWise, which provided me with major insight into a whole different food system. During my fellowship there, I produced a white paper that summarized the current traceability efforts, and concluded with recommendations for each sector of the seafood industry. After graduating from MIIS I worked with FishWise researching illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and human rights violations in the fishing supply chain. 

After grad school, I worked at CCOF where I started as a Handler Certification Specialist reviewing new and existing client files for compliance with the USDA National Organic Program and other applicable international standards. I then worked for the CCOF Foundation as the Events Coordinator planning the annual conference, educational & food safety trainings, and supporting developmental goals via research. 

Courses during my two years at MIIS:

  • Natural Resource Project Management
  • Sustainable Agriculture
  • Ag/Water Nexus: Lessons from the Central Coast 
  • Analytica for Environmental Policy
  • Cuba: Changing Course, Changing Times
  • Conservation Project Design and Evaluation
  • Conservation Management and Leadership
  • Protected Area Policy
  • GIS
  • Environmental Conflict Management
  • Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
  • Quantitative Analysis for Business
  • Business, Sustainability, and Society
  • Social Entrepreneurship
  • Grants & Contracts
  • Quantitative Methods for Environmental Science and Policy
  • Public Policy and the Environment
  • Research Strategies for Environmental Policy
  • International Environmental Law and Politics
  • Language: Spanish (three semesters)

Learn more about some of the additional trainings I completed at MIIS.

Before starting at MIIS, I earned my BA in Environmental Studies & Biology from UC Santa Cruz. While at UCSC I worked at the Seymour Center at LML teaching school children, working on environmental curriculum, and assisting with a variety of events and projects.

After graduation I worked at the Oakland Zoo in the Education and Conservation department, teaching field trips and educational programs, organizing events, and developing curriculum. I worked in Rome, Italy for a year teaching English as a second language, enjoying the food, and appreciating the history of the country. After my time in Europe, I traveled and volunteered internationally with various organizations working on issues ranging from literacy to weaving collectives to wildlife rehabilitation in Lao PDR, Peru, and Guatemala (respectively).