Courses Taught:

ENVIR 302: Environmental Communications

Education:

B.S. Environmental Science and Political Science, University of Minnesota, 2011

M.A. Geography, San Diego State University, 2016

Ph.D. Forest and Environmental Sciences, University of Washington, In Progress

Sarah MacFarland is a graduate student in the School of Forest and Environmental Sciences at the University of Washington.  Her research addresses the intersection between technology, nature, and people, spanning the effectiveness of apps designed to (re)connect people, especially kids, with the natural world, to considering ways to use machine learning to detect and measure how connected people feel with nature. Her master’s research focused on understanding how volunteering to monitor the environment through citizen science projects may promote pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors. Before returning to graduate school, she worked on water quality issues for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and for an environmental advocacy group based out of St. Louis, Missouri.  In her free time, Sarah loves puddle stomping, finger painting, and insect hunting with her three-year-old daughter, biking, cooking veggie-loaded meals, and knitting.