Fellows and Alumni

YEAH Fellows are graduate or senior-level undergraduate students who act as mentors and peers to facilitate student teams participating in multitudinous virtual classrooms organized by the YEAH Network. A critical responsibility of YEAH Fellows is to prepare students to have the common vision of sharing knowledge and experience gained in the YEAH classrooms at international platforms like the Conference of Parties (COP). Fellows are nominated by YEAH member institutions for periods ranging from a month to a year or more.

Sarah Whipple, Lead (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Sarah is a 3rd year PhD Student actively working toward doctoral candidacy at the Graduate Degree Program in Ecology (GDPE) at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA. Her research aims to track pollinators (bees and butterflies) in protected areas using citizen science tools and historical datasets to better understand the future of biodiversity within conserved spaces.

Jacob Genuise (YEAH Fellow 2021-2022)

Jacob (he/him) is a first-year master’s student in the Ecosystem Science and Sustainability program at Colorado State University. His work in the Bowser Lab revolves around better understanding pollinators in protected areas and engaging new perspectives in climate change negotiations.

Maryam Aida Tidjani (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Maryam is a senior in ecosystem science and sustainability at Colorado state University. She is also an international student from Cameroon. She joined the YEAH fellows this summer. Her interests are in sustainable development, city planning and renewable energy.

Alexis Pascaris (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Alexis is a research scientist with experience working on issues at the nexus of renewable energy, policy, technology, and society. Her research is focused on how renewable energy transitions and land use optimization can be advanced through agrivoltaic system development.

Shane French (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Shane French is a sustainability educator and enabler who is highly skilled in environmental awareness, education, community engagement and training; including twenty years' experience developing, leading and delivering community and grassroots sustainability programs to Primary, Secondary and Tertiary students, professional audiences and the general public. Shane strives to create empathy and compassion for the Earth in a creative and inclusive way, approaching his work with integrity for the planet and community. Shane loves sharing different perspectives on the natural environments we are a part of with a sense of positivity, and helping people feel more connected to their natural surroundings. Shane is currently studying the Master of Environment and Sustainability at Monash University, and loves cricket, Australian Rules football and tinkering in his shed.

Nicole Cowan (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Nicole Cowan is a student of the Masters of Environment and Sustainability at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. She has also completed a Bachelor's Degree in Science majoring in zoology and has a strong interest in conservation biology. Nicole also has a background in education and completed a Diploma in Education and taught Science and Maths in secondary schools. Currently, she is working as a Teaching Associate for Monash University in the Education Faculty, with a focus on sustainability in the classroom.

Brij Parmar (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Brij is an Industrial Designer and throughout his career has worked on a range of interdisciplinary and creative projects. He has experience working in design and manufacturing companies and educational settings. Brij is a committed student of music and martial arts and has been involved in many community projects. He is currently a casual tutor at the Victorian College of Arts (University of Melbourne). His passion for education and sustainability have led him to study a Master of Environment and Sustainability at Monash University.

Sarah Viders (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Sarah is studying Ecosystem Science and Sustainability at Colorado State University. She is from Lone Tree, Colorado and is a senior, graduating in December. She is in the process of applying to law school for Fall 2022, to become an environmental lawyer. Her passions include water law and environmental policy and this is her first semester as a YEAH Fellow.

Keegan Shealer (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Keegan is a senior studying Environmental Policy & Economics at Moravian University. This Fall and Spring Keegan is working with ICLEI and the PA Department of Environmental Protection, to form a climate action plan for the Lehigh Valley. This is his first semester with the YEAH Network and he is interested in learning more about SDG 7.

Nassy Khademimoshgenani (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Nassy is a PhD candidate and research assistant in the chemistry department of Michigan Technological University (MTU). Her research focuses on characterizing and understanding dissolved organic matter in marine environments. She is also interested in finding the linkages between natural organic matter and climate change.

Amanda Pastore (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Amanda is a second year Masters student at the University of Connecticut in the department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Her research focuses on responses of a plankton species to its predator and how rising CO2 levels will impact these predator-prey dynamics. Currently, she is studying the same species to understand how evolution acts on variation in plasticity!

Charles Doktycz (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Charles is a doctoral student in Civil Engineering at Vanderbilt University. He earned his M.S. degree in Environmental Engineering at Vanderbilt University and a B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His current research focuses on risk assessment of infrastructure systems impacted by severe weather as a result of climate change.

Emmeline Kelly (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Emmeline is a senior Environmental Studies major at Colorado College. She is interested in renewable energy and environmental economics with experience working in the field. Emmeline served as an intern at the New York Green Bank, which invests in projects that demonstrate greenhouse gas emissions reductions. She also had an internship with Goldman Sachs in the asset management division where she gained exposure to Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) investing.

Kaydee Barker (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Kaydee is a traveler/business consultant/communicator turned soil ecologist, currently pursuing her B.S. in Ecosystems Science and Sustainability and a minor in Soil Science at Colorado State University. Her research interests focus on understanding plant-soil interactions and biogeochemical cycling to provide a basis for making decisions about management of natural resources for climate change mitigation, food security, and global environmental justice.

Diellza Miriqi (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Diellza (she/her) is an Economics student at Colorado College. She is interested in water resources and management. Her experience consists of research in Colorado and the overall Upper Basin. Two summers ago, she worked on a literature review that examined the economic impacts of water demand management in the Upper Basin. This summer, Diellza researched the town of Castle Rock, where she looked at what has been done to manage water scarcities, and the behavioral economics of communicating water rates.

YEAH Alumni

Emma Conrad-Rooney (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Emma is the Lab Manager/Senior Research Technician for the Templer Lab in the Biology Department at Boston University, Boston, MA, USA. She is interested in how forest biogeochemistry is affected by climate change and urbanization.

Ally Murphy Pauletto (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Allyson is a double major at Colorado State University in Ecosystem Science and Sustainability and International Studies with minors in Spanish and International Development. She is a member of the CSU Women’s Varsity Soccer Team, the Rambition Women’s Leadership Group, the Vice President of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, and a member of the CSU Honors College. She is a lively, committed, and driven young woman dedicated to building relationships and bridges to find sustainable solutions in her community. Her campus community involvement includes Reading with the Rams and the CSU middle school outreach program. Her experiences interacting with people domestically and internationally has helped form her person and conscience into a dedicated global citizen working toward a more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable future.

Macy Halgren (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Macey is a graduate student at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA. Her research concentration is International Climate Governance, and she is passionate about environmental justice.

Melissa Morales (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Melissa is an undergraduate student at Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA, USA. She is a senior Environmental Science student who is passionate about forest and behavioral ecology.

Mireille Gonzalez (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Mireille is a social and behavioral scientist with a research background in environmental anthropology and conservation psychology. She is currently a 2nd year PhD student in the Human Dimensions of Natural Resources department at Colorado State University and received her BA in Anthropology from U.C. Berkeley and her MSc in Primate Behavior and Ecology from Central Washington University. She has experience working with a variety of cultural groups and animal species, and a special interest in keystone species, predators, wildlife governance, and the human-wildlife interface. Her current research focuses on characterizing and mitigating social conflict surrounding conservation issues, facilitating collaborative conservation, and enhancing environmental justice, and diversity and inclusion in natural resource management.

Madeline Allen (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Madeline is a 1st year PhD student in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Vanderbilt University. Currently, she is exploring the ways humans interact with and alter the landscape through the built environment, with an emphasis on extreme weather event preparedness and climate-related adaptations. She is committed to supporting data-driven land, resource, and emergency management decisions through GIS- and remote-sensing-based research.

Jaden Wrightsman (YEAH Fellow 2021)

Jaden is an undergraduate at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. He is a senior studying Ecosystem Science and Sustainability with a special interest in urban ecology and sustainable development, hoping to tie them into his future career.

Emily Faulks, (YEAH Fellow 2020-2021)

Zach Ginn (YEAH Fellow Fall 2020)

Zach is an undergraduate student at Colorado College, majoring in Organismal Biology and Ecology with a minor in Anthropology. He is an avid climber and skier, with interests in pollinator ecology and human resilience.

Elyse Goin (YEAH Fellow Fall 2020)

Elyse completed a BS degree in Marine Biology at UC San Diego, CA, USA. During her undergraduate studies, she learned from a wide array of scientists and participated in laboratory experiences. Upon graduating, she started working as a science interpreter at the Birch Aquarium and soon after she became an instructor. There, Elyse acquired the talents to teach ocean, earth, and climate science to guests from the age of 1 to 100 on land or sea. She has also worked for the Escondido Creek Conservancy as a Facilitator, leading groups of local children through the watershed habitat. Now, she is pursuing a Masters of Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, looking to bridge the gap between scientists, lawmakers, and the public. Elyse wants to be able to work with international governments to influence coastal communities.

Casmali Lopez (YEAH Fellow Fall 2020)

Casmali is an undergraduate student at Colorado College, Colorado Spring, CO, USA. He is a lifelong grass-roots organizer and a member of the Chumash Community. He has a special interest in indigenous politics, mathematical economics, and thinking through the lens of other possible worlds.

Amna Ijaz (YEAH Fellow Fall 2020)

Amna is a PhD candidate and Fulbright Scholar from Pakistan in the Department of Chemistry of Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA. Her research focuses on understanding the molecular nature of complex environmental (organic matter) mixtures from soil, water, and air using sophisticated analytical techniques, particularly high-resolution mass spectrometry.