Meet the Class

Sam is a second-year MEM student, focusing on Ecosystem Science & Conservation. After graduating from Washington University in St. Louis, Sam moved to San Francisco to work at Wells Fargo as a financial analyst in its Technology Industry Group. Working with renewable energy clients, Sam felt a greater need to address environmental issues. Shortly afterward, Sam returned to school to strengthen his understanding of conservation science. At the Nicholas School, Sam has worked with the Big Cats Initiative to map and analyze human impacts across the African Savannah, continuing the work in Tanzania this past summer.

Today, Sam is interested in understanding economic institutions and incentives driving small-holder interactions with the environment, with a focus on payments for ecosystem services (i.e. REDD+). He is interested in the development of local capacities to engage greater management of natural resources in East African countries.

Selene has a background in life sciences and is currently pursuing a Master’s of Environmental Management student at Duke University with a focus on environmental economics and policy. Previously, she interned with a non-government organization where she worked on environmental health and natural resource issues. Through graduate courses and her NGO work, Selene has written policy memos.  She also has done research on international conservation programs, such as Mexico’s Payment for Ecosystem Services program, and has conducted fieldwork in Mexico. Through this research, Selene developed an interest in the development process of REDD.

Marta Darby is pursuing her Master’s in Environmental Management with an emphasis on energy and environment at Duke University and her Juris Doctor at the University of Washington.  She received her undergraduate degree in Environmental Earth Science from Dartmouth College.  During her first year of law school last year, Marta assessed the national and international legal avenues available to several Guatemalan communities after agro-farming had usurped their access to clean water and  farmland.  Prior to returning to school, Marta analyzed and forecasted greenhouse gas emissions for the City of Aspen to determine whether the community was on track to meet its emission-reduction goals.  She also edited climate science reports for organizations such as the WWF and the U.S. Global Change Research Program and worked as the night editor at a daily newspaper where she managed the final production and editing and wrote breaking news.

Marta is interested in how to develop policy that minimizes legal and economic barriers to deploying renewable energy in developing nations while still maintaining incentives to innovate and in how to adapt best practices from one nation to another in light of cultural differences.

Jian received his bachelor’s degree from Renmin University of China in Environmental Economics. His passion and leadership inspired him to be an energetic pioneer in advocating environmental policy when he was an undergraduate student. After earning his bachelor’s degree, he pursued a more energy-based master’s degree in China. Currently, he is a Master of Environmental Management candidate at Duke University, focusing on energy and climate change.  Last summer, Jian worked for Mecklenburg County as an Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps Public Sector fellow, aiding the organization in capturing unrealized financial and environmental gains by identifying energy-efficiency improvements. Jian’s career interest lies in energy efficiency and conservation, renewable-energy finance and climate change mitigation.

Cassidy Travis is currently pursuing her Master’s in Environmental Management with an emphasis in environmental economics and policy at Duke University.  Prior to beginning her graduate studies, Cassidy worked in various sectors of environmental policy including the Environmental Protection Agency where she monitored clean air markets, the League of Conservation Voters where she worked to educate constituencies on the environmental positions of different members of Congress, and the United States Senate where she was engaged in developing environmental legislation.  More recently, Cassidy spent the summer working at the United Nations Environment Programme in their Conflicts and Disasters Branch.  Here she worked at the intersection of natural resource management and human security, furthering her interest in developing international policies that will help vulnerable communities cope with the impacts of climate change.

Meera is a first-year Master of Environmental Management Candidate in Energy and the Environment.  Previously, she worked for three years at the Peterson Institute for International Economics studying international climate change and trade policy issues, with a particular focus on North America. Her areas of expertise include carbon leakage, WTO environmental case law, North American state and provincial climate regulations, and NAFTA environmental institutions.  At Duke, she plans to gain a detailed knowledge of the economic, technical, and regulatory issues surrounding a transition to clean energy, including energy modeling and life-cycle analysis.  Post-graduation, she would like to promote policies that achieve a shift to a lower-carbon economy.

Stephanie is a second year MEM with a concentration in Ecosystems Science and Conservation. She is interested in biodiversity conservation and climate change – particularly in their overlap with programs like PES and REDD. Stephanie is an active member of the Environmental Markets Student Group, the Big Cats Initiative and is the President of the Duke Conservation Society.

Prior to Duke, she was a Campaign Manager at The Climate Group responsible for programs and partnerships with Fortune 500 companies and government, consulting on climate policy and low carbon technology.  Prior to this, she worked for two years as a Marketing Manager for a brand management company directing consumer campaigns. Stephanie has lived and worked in the Philippines, Germany, England, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Costa Rica and the US and is fluent in Filipino, Spanish and Portuguese. She is an avid adventurer and fan of circus tricks.

Jagrup is concentrating on Global Environmental Change at the Nicholas School of the Environment. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Geography/Environmental Studies and Environmental Systems & Society at the University of California, Los Angeles, in 2011. Her research interests include sustainable development on small island states and promoting community awareness and involvement. Using GIS and Remote Sensing software, Jagrup has completed various research projects mapping islands and graphically representing the effects tourism has had on them. Furthermore, she was heavily involved in sustainable action teams at UCLA, implementing real-world changes throughout the campus. In the future, Jagrup plans on working with communities in raising awareness and support for more environmentally conscious practices.

Kimberly is a second-yeargraduate student pursuing a master’s degree in environmental management at theNicholas School of the Environment at Duke University.  After receiving a B.A. in geology fromWashington University in St. Louis, she managed the environmental gallery atthe Saint Louis Science Center for several years.  During the summer of 2011, she interned withthe Union of Concerned Scientists in Chicago, managing ‘grass-tops’ outreach inOhio promoting a clean energy economy. She is a contributor to the Green Tie blog at NAEM, the premierassociation for EHS management.  She isparticularly interested in energy planning and in environmental communication.

Lannas Barfield is concentrating on Environmental Economics and Policy at the Nicholas School of the Environment. Prior to arriving at Duke, Lannas practiced Corporate/Securities Law for over eight years, and served as the Executive Director of a pediatric therapy practice. His interests include environmental valuation, and developing market mechanisms for ecosystem services use that achieve positive environmental and economic outcomes in developing countries. Lannas received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin and his Juris Doctorate from Washington and Lee University School of Law.

Kaola Swanson is in her second year studying Ecosystem Science and Conservation as an MEM at the Nicholas School while jointly pursuing a Master of Forestry. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science at the University of Oregon. Her love of wilderness and experience working in environmental education have brought her back to school to learn more about natural resource management and valuation. She is interested in the overlap between human and environmental health and wants to work to find realistic, sustainable solutions in areas where conflict exists. Her client based master’s project focuses on developing a water market in the Upper Neuse River Basin in North Carolina. She is very excited about the opportunity to work with Islands First in climate change policy development.

Margaret Tran is concentrating on Environmental Economics and Policy at the Nicholas School of the Environment. Margaret received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies with a minor in Economics at the University of Kansas in 2010. For the past 5 years, Margaret has worked on environmental justice, energy, and sustainable food issues with the EPA, 2020 Vision, the Sierra Club, Lawrence, Kansas restaurant Local Burger, and most recently, non-profit organization The Climate and Energy Project. As one of five Regional Coordinators with The Climate and Energy Project, Margaret has been leading the city of Lawrence, Kansas in the Take Charge Challenge, a friendly energy efficiency competition between Kansas communities. Margaret enjoys playing cello and guitar, singing, and writing music.

Jake is a second year MEM student in the global environmental change program, with specializations in biodiversity, landscape ecology, and climate adaptation. A graduate of Bard College at Simon’s Rock, Jake became passionate about the conservation of wild places and indigenous peoples’ rights during a research program in Kenya, where he monitored wildlife populations and human-wildlife conflict in Amboseli National Park and Maasai Mara National Reserve. His professional experience includes conducting freshwater management surveys for the World Wildlife Fund in Washington, DC, state environmental policy research and grassroots organizing with the Alabama Rivers Alliance, remotely examining biodiversity and microeconomics in Northern Uganda with Duke University, and climate change adaptation work for the Trust for Public Land. At Duke, Jake has specialized in the biogeochemistry, ecology, and policy complex surrounding climate change, and looks forward to bringing these specialties to bear in Durban.