Marielena (Mari) Herbst de Cortina

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Bio
Mari Herbst de Cortina graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) in 2018 with a degree in Environmental Studies. After completing undergrad, Mari worked as a harvest intern for a certified organic and biodynamic vineyard where she practiced sustainable farming techniques and saw how the quality of the land and the wine were enhanced as a result. However, being in a predominantly conventional farming community, she also observed harmful practices that put workers at risk and degraded Earth systems. She subsequently worked a few years in the tech sector before deciding to return to UCSB to pursue her master’s degree at the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, where she plans to concentrate her studies in Corporate Environmental Management to learn skills and develop knowledge to help make environmentally responsible products more accessible and affordable. She aims to work toward creating these products through methods that reduce waste and diminish negative impacts on environmental quality.