Throughout my scientific career, I have become increasingly preoccupied with impact. With sustainability and equity at the forefront of global conversation, I often reflect on my role as a scientist in ensuring a just and livable future. What is research really for, and how can we harness it to address our world’s most pressing challenges? My conclusion: science is thrilling, but only with skillful communication can it be leveraged for impact.

Growing up on a farm in the rural Midwest, I have always been fascinated by the interplay of nature and culture, and the complex systems produced. In every meaningful sense, the social and ecological are inseparable, as we are continually shaping, and being shaped by, our environment. I view this “interplay” not as a Venn Diagram of siloed disciplines, but rather a mindset with which to understand and interrogate our world’s sophisticated problems. During my academic career, I took advantage of every opportunity to immerse myself in different ecosystems, subjects, and cultures – resulting in 3 quarters of study abroad, countless off-campus excursions, a minor in Latin American Studies, and a firm belief in dissolving the nature-culture binary. Embracing this interdependence of systems and scales is, in my opinion, the first step in constructing just and effective solutions. These principles of interdisciplinarity and social-ecological systems lay the foundation for my work as both a scientist and a communicator. Most notably, they have taught me how to integrate the humanities into the scientific narrative.

While my background is in earth science, I’ve dedicated much of my time and coursework to the social sciences, which frame my perception of the world. I’ve learned that rigorously engaging the humanities is not only important but necessary in environmental science, and provides the groundwork for all good communication. Since ecological problems and social problems are inherently linked, focusing solely on the scientific side of the equation and ignoring the human experience leads to, at best, ineffective solutions, and at worst, catastrophic social and environmental damage. This lack of cultural awareness is a key ingredient in conservation’s problematic history, and human-centered communication is an essential tool for decolonizing conservation. While my technological and scientific skills have certainly proven useful, and as you will see in this portfolio have led to numerous discoveries and insights, only after integrating the humanities have I re-evaluated my worldview and gained the tools and frameworks to combat injustice in the environmental conversation, and fight for a more equitable future.

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