As an Atlanta native, I grew up backpacking the balds of the Southern Appalachians. Since then, I’ve founded a teaching-oriented bike shop while attending Clemson University, entertained Grand Teton National Park visitors with stories of wilderness advocates, and taught trailbuilding in northern New Mexico. I am currently a PhD student in Environmental Engineering at Cornell University, where my current work and passion is focused on plastic pollution: where it ends up and how we can measure it.