I was born and raised in Alaska and went to college in Bozeman, where I received a BA in Spanish and a BA in Art. After years of galavanting around the country as a nomadic river guide and winter recreation enthusiast, I began teaching at an International Baccalaureate school in Palmer, Alaska in 2007.  In 2010 I went to Ecuador on a Fulbright grant, where I focused on the efficacy of local watershed conservation initiatives and taught language courses at a rural Andean university. Upon my return in 2011, I began teaching at Garfield High School in Seattle and in 2014, compelled by unanswered questions about the relationships between rivers, communities, and words, I moved to Missoula to begin a Master's program in Environmental Studies. My thesis work took me back to Ecuador over subsequent winters, and I continue to explore and write about issues related to river contamination in the Andean Amazon region. 

 

In the summertime I like to take strangers rafting through the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, where I spend the time between big rapids trying to hide from the desert sun and looking for butterflies. I also like to go kayaking with my friends, read books, cuddle with my charismatic canine friend, Arlo, and write stories about adventures and rivers.