MESM 2027
Pronouns: she/her
Bio
As an undergraduate at the University of Washington in Seattle, Ellie channeled a natural curiosity for the world around her into a BA in Environmental Studies. An interest in understanding relationships between people and the environment led her to focus on Indigenous environmental studies. While earning her degree, Ellie interned for the nonprofit organization Seattle Neighborhood Greenways (SNG). There, she developed a project examining the impacts of systemic racism on the development of Seattle’s transportation infrastructure. Her research, based on qualitative interviews with Black community leaders, informed SNG’s advocacy for equitable transportation planning. This experience, along with her coursework, solidified Ellie’s interest in finding equitable solutions to environmental issues.
After graduation, Ellie returned home to California to serve as camp director at The Bishop’s Ranch. In that role, she learned the ins and outs of program management and enjoyed the challenge of rebuilding a camp community cratered by the COVID-19 pandemic. By her third summer, Ellie had achieved her goal of growing the camp beyond its pre-pandemic numbers and thus chose to further pursue her passion for environmental justice at the Bren School.
Ellie is excited to specialize in environmental policy and continue studying human connections to the environment through a new lens. She hopes to sharpen the public speaking and community building skills she developed as a camp director by pursuing the environmental communications focus. Ellie dreams of using her MESM degree to implement equitable solutions to the environmental problems facing her beloved Sonoma County.