About Me
Pronouns: she/her
I graduated from Cornell University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) in 2017 with a B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies, rooted in my multidisciplinary studies in animal health, ecology, biology, and anthropology. In 2023, I received my M.S. in Conservation Biology from the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology at Colorado State University, where I was part of Dr. Sara Bombaci's Diversity and Inclusion in Conservation Ecology Lab.
Currently, I work full-time as the Leadership Communication Specialist for the Office of the Dean at Cornell CALS. Through this role, I am responsible for writing speeches and managing correspondence for the college's Dean, Dr. Benjamin Houlton, and developing written content related, but not limited to, scientific research and innovation, policy, fundraising, stakeholder engagement, and student, staff, and faculty support.
I am also working part-time as an extension consultant with the Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, where I support the development of training materials that provide conservation practitioners with the necessary knowledge to utilize acoustic monitoring to answer research questions related to occupancy, acoustic localization, noise pollution, and more. This position is nurturing my ability to support capacity-building initiatives and amplify the power of global communities to manage their natural resources using bioacoustics.
In addition to my interests in communication, community engagement, and education, I am broadly interested in utilizing passive acoustic monitoring systems and novel technology to increase our understanding of the complex relationships between anthropogenic disturbances, ecosystem health, and species’ activities, behaviors, and survival, with a specific focus on conducting this work through the study of African forest elephants (Loxodonta cyclotis). I aim to continue developing my understanding of these relationships while expanding our capacity to make informed management decisions that benefit both people and nature.
I have a special interest in and a strong commitment to completing this work by cultivating collaborative partnerships with other stakeholders, nurturing trust and the transfer of diverse forms of knowledge with the communities I engage with, sharing conservation bioacoustics narratives and stories using a wide array of media types, and practicing and promoting conservation action grounded in environmental justice, intersectional feminism, anti-oppression, and decolonization.
I have a strong interest in promoting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion through my work, and I am collaborating on several research projects related to social and environmental justice in academia and conservation. This advocacy is grounded in my lived experiences as a Zoroastrian woman, as a member and ally of the LGBTQIA+ community, as a person who is neurodivergent, and in my firm belief that the recognition and equitable inclusion of a diversity of theories, perspectives, and identities will significantly augment scientific comprehension of our world and our capacity to preserve it.
Contact Me
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260 Roberts Hall
Office of the Dean
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
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Cornell University is located on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Gayogo̱hó:nǫ' (the Cayuga Nation). The Gayogo̱hó:nǫ' are members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, an alliance of six sovereign Nations with a historic and contemporary presence on this land. I acknowledge the painful history of Gayogo̱hó:nǫ'' oppression and honor the enduring connection that Gayogo̱hó:nǫ'' people, both past and present, hold to these lands and waters.