Alaina Geibig, Research Assistant and WCC Coordinator | Alaina is a Master of Environmental Management candidate interested in joint land and water management in the working landscapes of the Rocky Mountains. Prior to attending Yale School of the Environment, Alaina explored the intersection of food cultivation and conservation through a variety of AmeriCorps positions in rural Colorado. These experiences were pivotal in identifying Alaina’s deep-seated value for authentic, place-based knowledge systems harbored by farmers and ranchers. Her education supports that it has always been about relationships; she holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Puget Sound. In her free time, you can find Alaina (and her dog) playing outside on skis, bikes, or foot. See what Alaina has been up to. | Blog
Li Murphy – WCC Coordinator | Li is a Master of Environmental Science candidate funded by the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, focusing on the social and ecological dynamics of insect-human interactions. She is currently working on a project about Mormon crickets in the Intermountain West. Originally from Idaho, she has a particular fondness for the state insect, the Monarch butterfly. Prior to Yale, Li was dedicated to community science, managing field camps in the Great Basin, driving a roving mobile STEM outreach laboratory, and then briefly piloting a planetarium. She believes in providing more inroads and support to folks, especially those with marginalized identities, to participate in framing and practicing scientific research, especially research that drives allocation of resources and environmental decision-making. She holds a BA degree in biology and geology from Harvard University. Li volunteers for the American Geophysical Union Local Science Partners and serves on the board for the nonprofit Nonhuman Teachers. She can often be found jogging, trying to keep her succulents alive, or surfing badly. See what Li has been up to.
Taylor Furrh – WCC Coordinator | Taylor is a Master of Environmental Management candidate specializing in environmental policy analysis. Prior to attending Yale School of the Environment, Taylor worked as a Legislative Aide in the Colorado House of Representatives, for political campaigns, and in legal administration roles. From these positions and growing up in different landscapes across Washington and Colorado, Taylor found a passion for sustainable land use and conservation policy. Taylor holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of Colorado Boulder. In her free time, Taylor can be found taking hikes with her pup, playing volleyball, or cooking new recipes. See what Taylor has been up to.
Madeline Gupta – Communications and Website Coordinator | Madeline Gupta (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) is a Yale College student studying Statistics and Data Science and Ethnicity Race and Migration. She founded the Yale’s Chapter of American Indian Science and Engineering Society and recently brought home the National Chapter Award from the most recent AISES conference. As an engineer for Apple, Zillow, and Google, Madeline has deep experience with building technologies and how they relate to communities around the world. She is now interested in powerfully integrating Indigenous perspectives in technology through the novel field of “Indigenous Technology Futurisms” which puts Indigenous people at the forefront of technology as it relates to their wellness and futures. You can reach Madeline at madeline.gupta@yale.edu, or on Linkedin.
Joshua Blake – Communications and Website Coordinator | Joshua Blake is a student in Yale College studying Ethics, Politics, & Economics. He manages communications coordination for UHPSI in the Yale School of the Environment, namely on its social media platforms. Elsewhere on campus, you can find him staying active playing squash, participating in the Yale Political Union, or representing Morse College in the Yale College Council. He is interested in a career in law, government, and politics, and hopes to serve his home state of Louisiana. You can reach Joshua at joshua.blake@yale.edu, or on Linkedin.
Jianing Tian – Western Resource Fellow | Jianing is a Master of Environmental Science candidate at the Yale School of the Environment (YSE), where she specializes in dryland ecology and ecosystem recovery. She is particularly interested in the carbon cycle, including carbon emissions, soil carbon sequestration, and overall ecosystem carbon balance. Before YSE, Jianing earned a dual B.S. degree in Environmental Science from Duke Kunshan University and Duke University. During her undergraduate studies, she conducted research on agricultural carbon emissions, and she now aims to apply geospatial analysis and remote sensing to study vegetation recovery and carbon dynamics in semi-arid landscapes. In her free time, Jianing enjoys jogging, hiking, and playing musical instruments. See what Jianing has been up to.
Myroslav Bur – Western Resource Fellow | Myroslav Bur is a Yale College undergraduate studying Chemistry, with a focus on soil chemistry and sustainable agriculture. He is particularly interested in agricultural systems that emulate natural ecosystems, and how soil dynamics shape plant communities in arid landscapes. Through studying the sagebrush ecosystem of the American West, he hopes to better understand plant-soil interactions in dry environments and apply this knowledge to both conservation and agricultural resilience. In his free time, Myroslav enjoys reading scientific literature while drinking home-brewed full-leaf tea. See what Myroslav has been up to.
Bella Amell – Western Resource Fellow | Bella is a student in Yale College studying Global Affairs and Environmental Studies, with a concentration in environmental law and policy. She was born and raised in the beautiful Brunswick, Maryland, and is passionate about advocating for environmental justice and ecosystem conservation in rural communities. Elsewhere on campus, you can find her singing with her acapella group, the New Blue of Yale, crafting the perfect cup of coffee at the Silliman Acorn, or representing her residential college community as a Senator on the Yale College Council. See what Bella has been up to.
Carine Rofshus – Western Resource Fellow | Carine is a Master’s in Environmental Science Candidate at the Yale School of Environment. Her research focuses on the integration of Traditional Ecological Knowledge and cultural resources stewardship through working with Indigenous communities in the U.S. Southwest. She is particularly interested in the relationship between traditional ceramics processes and the environment as place-making practices. Carine currently serves as a NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Reparation Act) Assistant for the Yale Peabody Museum. Prior to Yale, Carine worked as an archaeologist for a native-women-owned small business dedicated to hazardous waste clean-up on Tribal, Federal, and Department of Defense lands. She has extensive experience on the Navajo Nation in addition to Arizona, Colorado, Guam, New Mexico, and Utah. Carine is a former National Park Service Cultural Interpretation volunteer for the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. She holds a BA in Art History from St. Olaf College and attended the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center Field School as a National Science Foundation Fellow. In her free time, she enjoys backpacking, figure skating, and watercolor painting. See what Carine has been up to.
Isabella Goodman – Western Resource Fellow | Isabella Goodman is a Master of Environmental Science Student at Yale School of the Environment studying dryland ecosystems in the American west. Her research focus on how climate change is driving changes in primary production in the western great plains. Originally from Alaska, Isabella has always been passionate about ecology, conservation, research, and the outdoors. She holds a B.S. in Conservation Biology from Montana State University, where she also worked as a research assistant. When not studying grasses and ID-ing plants she loves to trail run, ski, and knit. See what Isabella has been up to.
