Fellowships > 2005 Fellows

(Grant Period: February 2005 - December 2005)

Leveraging their efforts beyond the campus bounds, National Wildlife Federation's (NWF) 2005 Campus Ecology Fellows are transforming their university's operations, building community ties and advancing discussions about and solutions to address global environmental issues.

From 10 states across the country, including one fellow from Hawai'i and two fellows from Alaska, this class of 14 fellows are working on issues such as creating bicycle fleets to abate local transportation demands, establishing native gardens that embrace local Native Hawaiian traditions, researching the impacts of climate change on Native Alaskan communities and establishing a dialogue to address issues and solutions on climate change.

Embracing our commitment to infusing youth participation and voices within NWF and our affiliate organizations the 2005 fellows will join NWF's 69th Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. During the Annual Meeting the fellows will be briefed on climate change, learn how to lobby and put those skills to work, learn about NWF's decision making and conservation policies, and mingle with staff, volunteers and Board Members.

Through the generous support of the Kendeda Sustainability Fund of the Tides Foundation, during the course of their projects the fellows will build their professional skills and grow as individuals on a personal level. As articulated by Richard Strain, 2004 NWF Campus Ecology Fellow from the State University of New York at Albany, this experience is beyond compare: "My experience as an NWF Campus Ecology Fellow taught me the pitfalls to avoid and the actions to take in order to successfully coordinate differing personalities, roles and responsibilities, which are as complex and wondrous as the relationships found within the environment I had set out to protect."

2005 Fellows

The following project highlight the goals of this year's fellows. For more information and contact information on these projects and more, search the Fellowships database by campus or project topic.

Ryan Campbell, junior
Southern Illinois University - Carbondale
Carbondale, Illinois
Establishing and maintaining a pilot fleet of free bicycles on campus and educating current and incoming students, staff, faculty, and community members about the economic, social and environmental benefits of cycling.

V. Matthew Gilbert, senior
University of Alaska - Anchorage
Anchorage, Alaska
Researching the effects of global warming as observed by Gwich'in Athabascan elders and hunters in the Alaska Interior region and the assessing capacity and interest tribes have in addressing this issue.

Tessa Haagenson, junior
Bemidji State University
Bemidji, Minnesota
Organizing town hall forums with campus and community members to discuss the effects of global warming and proposing a student fee to support the purchase of renewable energy on campus.

Max Kitaj, sophomore
University of California - Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Restoring native grassland habitat with the support of campus and community members, establishing educational signage on local species and surveying local biota to support a campus biodiversity database.

Carolyn Lambert, graduate student
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Organizing town hall forums on global warming and renewable energy in the Ohio River Valley on a renewable energy powered houseboat and engaging coal industry workers, state legislators, board members of local environmental regulatory commissions, farmers and boaters.

Rebecca McAtee, junior
Valley Forge Christian College
Phoenixville, Pennsylvania
Advancing energy conservation through educational outreach, engaging service learning students, updating light fixtures in the gymnasium and calculating energy, cost and greenhouse gas savings.

Emma Mullaney, sophomore
Sarah Lawrence College
Bronxville, New York
Organizing town hall forums to discuss the local effects of energy practices and global warming, engaging campus and community members from the Hudson River corridor and emphasizing social and environmental justice.

Mark Owens, junior
University of Florida
Gainsville, Florida
Implementing a pilot energy savings program in campus fraternity and sorority houses aiming for a 5% to 10% reduction in energy usage and reinvesting savings into local environmental and social programs.

Colin Quinn-Hurst, senior
Alaska Pacific University
Anchorage, Alaska
Assessing current and projected parking costs per vehicle trip to campus, identifying campus-specific methods of shifting transportation demand to alternative modes and presenting the financial savings, social benefits and recommendations for the campus Master Plan.

Amy Seek, graduate student
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Assessing the university's landscape maintenance program, developing and proposing the adoption of a sustainable campus landscape policy and designing three campus sites to demonstrate this approach.

Samantha Symon, sophomore
Eckerd College
St. Petersburg, Florida
Expanding and improving native gardens on campus, engaging campus and community members, increasing knowledge about the benefits of native plant landscaping and facilitating the integration into the campus Master Plan.

Shane Tedder, graduate student
University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Expanding and maintaining a fleet of free bicycles on campus for students, faculty and staff, establishing a second checkout location and developing a comprehensive social marketing plan.

Laura Wigand, junior
Guilford College
Greensboro, North Carolina
Establishing a bioretention cell to address storm water management and educating campus and community members on the importance of decreasing the college's environmental footprint.

Kawika Winter, PhD student
University of Hawai'i at Manoa
Honolulu, Hawaii
Removing invasive species, restoring the ecological and cultural integrity of a landscape, engaging university students and local community members and supporting Native Hawaiian knowledge and culture.