Big Sur Powerdown

In 2008, I graduated from the the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor with a dual degree in Economics and Program in the Environment.  My undergraduate experience was astounding.  I developed a strong passion for environmental issues and sustainability.  In particular, I'm very interested in sustainable agriculture and how it can be implemented to reduce world hunger and poverty while also providing solutions to major environmental issues.

In 2007, I spent four months studying abroad in Costa Rica.  The program taught me about the socioeconomics of Costa Rica, the political economy and CAFTA, the ecology of both managed and natural ecosystems in Central America, and Costa Rican agriculture in the context of globalization.  I was able to see firsthand the negative effects of transnational agribusiness while on the other hand meet with alternative farmers who focus on local, sustainable agriculture.

In addition,  I conducted an independent research project comparing organic and conventional coffee and cattle farms to a permaculture agricultural system.  I was able to create a report that offered solutions to the farmers on how they could farm in a more ecologically, economically, and socially sustainable manner.                                                                                                   

About a month and half after returning from Costa Rica, I traveled to Southern Africa and spent six weeks backpacking with my boyfriend through South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, and Botswana.  Once again, I was able to take in a completely different perspective of globalization and poverty than you get living in the United States.

Immediately following graduation, I spent two weeks in Chiapas, Mexico learning about the Zapatista movement and the indigenous people of Chiapas, coffee cooperatives and their connection with Higher Grounds - the fair trade, organic coffee importer and roaster located in Traverse City, MI - and about the farmers and researchers who are focusing on sustainable agriculture in the region.

The summer after graduation I also interned as one of the two Program Coordinators for Cultivating Community, which is a student program that's part of the University of Michigan's Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum.  CC is focused on educating University of Michigan students about community food systems through hands-on organic gardening and volunteer activities.  I helped manage three demonstration gardens and planned field trips, workshops, and other educational events for Cultivating Community volunteers.

I'm currently living in San Francisco, CA.  I'm serving in an Americorps position with the San Francisco Urban Service Project.  I've been placed as an Environmental Educator for the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Youth Stewardship Program.  Eventually, I would like to return to graduate school in order to study, in some capacity, sustainable agriculture and how it can implemented more completely in the US and throughout the world.

Mozambican sunset in the mangroves