When I was growing up, I spent my free time exploring the hills north of Reno, either riding a horse or pretending to be a horse (I was obsessed with horses). During these excursions, I developed a fascination with the natural world and loved interacting with the plants and animals, rocks, soil, and water around me. I also gardened and kept lots of houseplants from a young age. I had my own big flower box in front of our house where I grew plants from starters given to me by my grandmother. These interests inspired me to take some biology courses at the local community college. A passion for ecology and environmental science was ignited when I took a class called Man and the Environment where I developed insight into the human impacts on fragile ecosystems and biodiversity. Coupling that passion with my love for nature, plants, and wildlife, I transferred to UNR majoring in conservation biology with an emphasis in plant biology, then got a Master of Science degree in plant biology from Southern Illinois University.
I consider myself a conservationist, but I’m also a pragmatist. I’m not too idealistic, but I am passionate about protecting natural resources and applying sound ecological principles to our work. I strive to make each project the best that it can be, not only in achieving high technical quality and legal defensibility but also to cause the least environmental harm within the construct of applicable laws and regulations.
Currently, I focus my professional energy on ecologically consequential work, such as vegetation treatment and land management projects, and try to apply Ascent’s core value of environmental and community stewardship to these projects. I work on botanical surveys, aquatic resources delineations, Clean Water Act permitting, and vegetation mapping and classification, as well as CEQA/NEPA compliance. I provide senior technical review of biological resources reports, permit applications, delineation reports, and CEQA/NEPA sections and strive to provide meaningful feedback to help staff grow in technical competency and writing proficiency. I am the workload coordinator for our Natural Resources Group, helping to maintain workload balance and assign tasks to match staff technical skills, interests, and goals so they can do work that is rewarding and that also provides the best results for our clients.
MS, Plant Biology (Ecology), Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
BS, Plant Biology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
California Native Plant Society (board member, Sacramento chapter)
Sierra Club
Capital Public Radio
