As a child I loved animals, climbing trees, and generally playing in the dirt. While those passions have always remained, over time they faded into the background of my academic and professional pursuits. However, in the last few years I have “returned to my roots” and in 2019 I completed a Master of Arts degree in Biology through Miami University’s Advanced Inquiry Program at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, WA. I am now working towards a Master of Professional Science in Environmental Science with Unity College in Unity, ME. The Pacific Northwest/Cascadia region of North America is the place that always beckons me home, and the area where I am fortunate to be currently living and learning is the traditional territory of the Duwamish, Coast Salish, Snohomish, and Suquamish People past and present. They are the stewards of these lands since time immemorial, and I am so grateful.