Biography
Arlington, MA
B.M., Flute Performance, Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford Pre-requisite courses in ecology, biology, statistics, Harvard Extension School
Why did you choose to pursue this degree, and why did you choose Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine to pursue this degree?
All my life I have been interested in becoming a conservation biologist, and more recently became interested in conservation veterinary, which led me to the Cummings School. I wanted a Master’s program that combined scientific skills training with a deep look at subject areas I might want to pursue for research. I’m fascinated by the One Health and Conservation Medicine concepts, which both suggest the application of hard science disciplines to working for conservation of species and ecosystem health. I’m thrilled to be here!
What are your interests and/or experience relative to your program?
I have worked on the large scale problem of climate change throughout my career, focused mainly on policymaking in Congress and in cities, and on advancing a new solution, mass timber construction, to reduce the emissions of construction and preserve working forest tracts. My interests include large scale ecosystems critical to balancing the carbon cycle, including grasslands and net primary production in the oceans, and the role of mammals in helping maintain those systems. I’m also interested in rising incidence of zoonotic disease due to degradation of landscapes, removal of species, and related interventions for restoring population and ecosystem health.
What are your career goals after completing the program?
I would like to have the skills to assess population health, investigate disease outbreaks, and create management or restoration plans, as well as enumerate the connections between large migratory herbivores and net primary production in key ecosystems.