Alpine to Ocean

I so love writing, beyond crafting interpretive programs for work. Notably, I enjoy workshopping creative writing pieces that inspire climate action, personal narratives and reflection pieces about life-changing experiences, and research papers exploring conservation and environmental justice issues. I'm lucky to have lived in and traveled to some uniquely incredible places that have inspired much of my writing over the years.

Below are samples of my writing voice in each style of writing, from the many places I've traveled.

Creative Writing on Climate Action

Like Rotting Teeth

All the Things I Long to Say

Beyond Where We Should've Gone

"Like Rotting Teeth" is a short speculative fiction essay following a young girl's experience watching her home along a canal in the Netherlands deteriorate because of increased flooding from climate change. "All the Things I Long to Say" is a true story of a moment, told in verse, and the inner battle I was considering while looking out my window at a red shouldered hawk one day. "Beyond Where We Should've Gone" is a short science fiction piece about a person who lands on another planet after the climate had become unlivable on Earth, and they're determined not to make the same exploitative mistakes in their new home.

Personal Narratives & Reflection-Based Pieces

Better Together

After embarking on a two-month-long research cruise off the coast of Antarctica, the persistence of the stunning wildlife and seaside scenes I witnessed gave me courage to unearth questions about family wounds when I returned home.

Askren - Archaeology Final Essay

(Digging) Under the Tuscan Sun

One month spent digging to rediscover history under the harsh Tuscan sun taught me about my own strength, the strength of working in the field alongside a great team of people, and the strength of ancient civilizations.

Published Research Papers

Honors Thesis Presentation

Ironing Out Primary Productivity:

The Effect of Hydrothermal Iron on Phytoplankton Photophysiology in the Southern Ocean

Following my participation in an Antarctic research cruise from December 2024-February 2025, I wrote an undergraduate honors thesis on my findings, which is now published in the Stanford University digital repository (link here). I also presented my research to my peers and Earth Systems faculty (slideshow above). Our cruise focused on the relationship between a recurring phytoplankton bloom in the Ross Sea and hydrothermal vents on the seafloor below it, and my research helped prove that the vents were providing the bloom with nutrients necessary for growth, earning me the 2026 Stanford University Earth Systems Award for Outstanding Research.

Natural Chimera Poster

Survival Benefits Outweigh Germline Competition Costs in Kin Chimeras

Summer 2022 is when I first interned with the Voskoboynik Lab at Hopkins Marine Station in Monterey, CA. It was also the beginning of a years-long journey to publishing my first scientific research paper (link here, in progress for publication with a scientific journal). The lab studies a marine tunicate species called Botryllus schlosseri, the closest living invertebrate relative to humans. My project helped us better understand how this tunicate survives in the wild, as we found that many individuals will choose to fuse with other individuals to form chimeras that boost life span; fusions between individuals can also fail and lead to rejections, which clog blood vessels and lead to shortened life spans. Above is a poster I made to present our preliminary findings at various conferences.

Papers on Marine & Freshwater Conservation

Much of my writing centers around the concept of human health being impacted by environmental health, and environmental health being impacted by human activity. I like to examine this human-environment connection particularly in marine and freshwater ecosystems, since people have gathered near water and created civilizations centered around this sacred resource since the dawn of time. Looking at how we interact with it and view it today is fascinating to me.

Marine Protected Areas: Opportunities for Marine Conservation and Lifting Indigenous Voices

Marine Protected Areas:

Opportunities for Marine Conservation and Lifting Indigenous Voices

The Marine Anthropocene: An Exploration of the Impact of Anthropomorphism in the Western World and More Holistic Approaches

The Marine Anthropocene:

An Exploration of the Impact of Anthropomorphism in the Western World and More Holistic Approaches

The Klamath River: A Lens into Human-Environment Connection & New Conservation Tactics

The Klamath River:

A Lens into Human-Environment Connection & New Conservation Tactics

Papers on Environmental Justice Issues

Water: A Sacred and Threatened Resource

This paper examines oral history stories from the Mojave Tribe, Cherokee Nation, and Takelma-Siletz Tribes to understand Native communities' historical connection to water sources on their ancestral lands. It also looks at how and why Alaska Natives, the Navajo Nation, and the Yurok Tribe have been heavily involved in modern water conservation efforts.

Askren - Semester Project Final Draft

Uranium and Arsenic in Unregulated Water Sources on Navajo Land

A scientific review paper about one of the environmental injustices Navajo peoples face today: uranium and arsenic from abandoned uranium ore mines seeping into their water sources on their lands, causing serious health issues amongst their citizens.

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