The Aldo Leopold Foundation’s Future Leaders Program is providing training and field experience to more young conservation professionals than ever before! This year, the historically 9-month program is expanding to host four fellows on a year-long track that integrates hands-on experiences with a unique professional development curriculum. The 2019-2020 cohort has finally arrived on-site and consists of two Education and Communications Fellows and two Land Stewardship Fellows.
Please help us welcome Lillie, Eudora, Makayla, and Suzanne! And if you visit Leopold Country in the next year be sure to say hello!
Education and Communications Fellows
Lillie Herbst
Lillie just completed her undergraduate degree in Political Science from Beloit College. She also has a minor in Environmental Studies and Law & Justice. During her time at Beloit, she has worked with campus organizations geared toward sustainability, been an editor for the Round Table (a Beloit campus newspaper), and has worked with community organizations to help students volunteer their time. In her spare time, she enjoys exploring the greater Beloit area, attending concerts and shows on campus, and spending social time with friends. She is originally from Milaca, MN, which is a small town in central Minnesota. There she grew up on a family farm and fostered her connection with the environment. She is excited to graduate from college and start working with the Aldo Leopold Foundation!
Suzanne Londeree
When Suzanne is met with a fork in the road, she believes in choosing the option that will challenge her most to learn and grow, which tends to be the path less traveled. This approach has taken her from the Midwest to the Pacific Northwest, to the Northeast, and back again. Originally from St. Louis, her connection to the land evolved from catching tadpoles on her grandparent’s property to an intense interest in sustainable agriculture to a passion for identifying trees. After high school, Suzanne ventured to Pullman, WA to attend college at Washington State University. In college, Suzanne dove head-first into leading and serving her community through hall government, student organizations, and projects with local non-profits. While she values all aspects of the highly interdisciplinary field of environmental science, education and policy are her favorite components. Suzanne is an avid reader and also loves dogs, hiking, cooking, classical music, mid-19th century paintings, and road trips.
Land Stewardship Fellows
Makayla Marshall
Makayla is a 2019 graduate from Lake Superior State University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Conservation Biology. She conducted her senior research on Refining a Volunteer Retention Program for the City of Ann Arbor Natural Area Preservation. During her undergraduate work, she was a scholar with the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program at the University of Michigan from 2017 to 2018. Makayla grew up in a rural town in southeast Michigan where her love for protecting the natural resources began. Her environmental interests include plastic impacts, environmental volunteerism, environmental justice, and restoration ecology. In her free time, she enjoys weightlifting, backpacking, yoga, reading, and learning new languages.
Eudora Miao
Coming from Sichuan, southwest China, Eudora enjoys the spicy food, mountains, and the fantastic biodiversity of her home province. This year, she graduated from Duke University with majors in Biology and Environmental Science. Her interests include conservation, restoration, and environmental education. In addition, she explores the connection between nature and culture through her passion in farming, cooking, and photography. When Eudora is not at work, she is probably squatting near mushrooms and plants, birding, traveling, reading, running, doing yoga, or learning accordion & ukulele.