As the Science and Communication Fellow on the Climate and Rural Systems Partnership at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, community engagement has been the focus of my work for the last two years. I have helped the partnership build networks in two rural areas in western PA. Along the way I have built trusting relationships with community organizers, conservation managers, farmers, environmental educators, and artists.

My science communication and community engagement practice is centered on the stakeholders I'm working with, their questions, observations, and future visions. We come together over our shared interest in talking more about climate change and working toward climate action in their rural communities. From there, we've spent time building a shared understanding of the challenges rural communities face due to climate change through exploring climate trends in local long-term weather records, emotional expression through art, and relationship building among network members to reduce their feeling of isolation. We've looked at the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication Climate Opinion Maps and conducted our own public polls that show that more people want to talk about climate change than you might think in our rural areas (about 60-70% of adults). We've also worked on changing the narrative around climate change to a focus on climate action, hopeful futures, and a just transition to renewable energy to support a sense of self- and community-efficacy.

Soybean field in the fall with two poster boards in the field with different climate change questions and brightly colored sticky notes on them.
Sticky note responses from farmers at a soil health workshop in Mercer, PA.
Three people standing in front of a research poster smiling.
I've mentored many undergraduate researchers, including Carlneshia Johnson (2016 REU from Alcorn State U.). This photo is from her research poster presentation with me and my PhD advisor, Steve Hamilton. Carlneshia's poster was titled, "The effect of nitrogen fertilizer and irrigation on lime carbon sequestration." Images used with permission. Photo by Julie Doll.
Woman in a building wearing a sign that says
At the Great Stoneboro Fair in Stoneboro, PA. September 2021. Photo by Mary Ann Steiner.
A group of people sitting in a circle on a large porch area in the woods.
Climate and Rural Systems Partnership (CRSP) workshop on alternative climate futures and climate action storytelling at Powdermill Nature Reserve in September 2021. Images used with permission. Photo by Nicole Heller.
I'm a co-founder, the logo designer, and a contributor to Plant Love Stories--we collect stories from the public about how plants have shaped our lives. You can read one of my Plant Love Stories here. We're also on Facebook and Twitter (@PlantLoveStory). What's your Plant Love Story? Submit here.