Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation

Fellowship Year: 2011

Academic Background: Lesley University - MA 2012- (Urban Environmental Leadership)

Current Position: Program Coordinator , Chicago Conservation Corps (C3); Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Currently Working On: community engagement, environmental education, urban ecology, environmental stewardship

Kristen studied Urban Environmental Leadership at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. Kristen's thesis and final action research project focused upon building relationships between grassroots environmentalists and local government. Kristen currently works for the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, coordinating the Chicago Conservation Corps (C3). This program recruits, trains, and supports residents of Chicago as they plan and implement community-based environmental service projects. She works with teachers who lead school-based conservation clubs in more than 80 Chicago Public Schools, and with 450 community-based, adult volunteers throughout Chicago. Kristen has a B.S. in Zoology from Michigan State University, with a concentration in Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology. She also specialized in Environmental Education and Community Engagement. She has extensive experience in qualitative and quantitative research on place-based education in youth, and in developing and implementing community-based youth programming. She was named a 2007 Udall Scholar in honor of her environmental education efforts, and is certified through the National Association of Interpretation as an Interpretive Guide.

Expertise: Environmental Education, Conservation Science & Biology, Environmental Justice