Lecturer and Academic Program Specialist; School for Environment and Sustainability
As a Lecturer and Academic Program Specialist in the School for Environment and Sustainability, I focus on teaching and community engagement in the realms of ecology, field biology, and conservation, including agroecology and restoration agriculture. After my initial training as evolutionary ecologist, specialized in plant-animal interactions, I spent several years as a consultant in adaptive management and program evaluation. This work was part of the Ecosystem Management Initiative, where we developed practical guides and facilitated workshops for conservation organizations across the country. Currently, in my teaching and student advising, I seek to integrate student learning with the real-world data needs and practices of local stewards, planners, farmers, and managers. This includes running several field labs and student research projects to farms and public lands throughout southeast Michigan. I also partner with The Stewardship Network to co-run programs like Professional Stewards Hikes, where academics and private and public decision-makers come together in the field to discuss local conservation and restoration challenges and solutions.
