MES in the Community 2016

On some days, John Butow (Master of Environmental Studies ’14) works with Aramark Facilities Services locations to help their operations comply with environmental regulations and find solutions for risks.

“The more people appreciate their local environment, the easier it is for them to care about ones that are further away” shares Natalie Howe, PhD (Master of Environmental Studies ’06).

“Far too often our poor or minority communities bear the brunt of the nation’s ecological harms,” shares Matthew Lee (Master of Environmental Studies ’08).

“I’m a big kid getting paid to play in the mud,” laughs Mike McGraw (Master of Environmental Studies ’15), the passionate Senior Wildlife Biologist and Ecologist and the PA Branch Manager for Applied Ecological Services.

“If you interviewed me last year, I would have said I wanted to go to med school. Now, after being exposed to so much at Penn, I know my calling is in global work,” shares Akudo Ejelonu.

“Birds are excellent indicators of how your ecosystem is doing,” shares Heather Kostick (Master of Environmental Studies, December ’16—expected), “If they can’t survive, we’re in bad shape.”

It was swimming that first brought Tom to Penn as an Engineering major and eventually to a master’s degree and a career with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Adam Sprague (Master of Environmental Studies ’14) has spent a lifetime observing the environmental impact of human beings on our Earth.

“Water is elemental to our continued existence,” shares Brian Byrnes (Master of Environmental Studies, ’04), “it is the most important shared resource that we have and everyone needs and deserves clean water.

When Bob Wells (Master of Environmental Studies ’13) talks about the White Oak, it’s like listening to an artist talk about his muse, “It’s the most beautiful tree there is on the eastern seaboard.” As the Arboriculture Director at Morris Arboretum, Bob admits, “people get very emotionally involved with their trees.”

As the Program Coordinator for the Penn Institute for Urban Research (IUR), Laura works across the University to foster collaborations among scholars and policymakers to address the needs of an increasingly urbanized society.

Greg Kelder (Master of Environmental Studies, ’10) has had a lifelong relationship with the great outdoors. Growing up in the Hudson Valley, Greg and his family spent their time visiting national parks, hiking the Adirondacks and driving 25 miles to nearby recycling plants to do their part to help the environment.