Madeleine Pacheco (she/her/ella) is a second year PhD student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department under the supervision of Dr. Paul Barber at UCLA. As a NSF Graduate Research Fellow, Madeleine is interested in using genomic tools to investigate coral reef biodiversity and resilience. As an Early Career and Climate Resilience Fellow with CDLS, Madeleine is striving to build a more inclusive scientific community by cultivating equitable participation of underrepresented groups in the fields of environmental science and conservation. Outside of science, Madeleine loves doing sports like yoga or rock climbing and visiting national parks!

Kaitlyn is the Program Manager of UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, where she manages a wide variety programs and initiatives, most notably the Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award, to support the engagement and visibility of the IoES. As a Los Angeles native, she is driven to build community and uplift the work of forefront leaders to solve our most pressing environmental issues.  

Kaitlyn previously served as a Program Manager for Larta Institute, where she developed programs aimed at accelerating sustainable solutions and providing commercialization assistance for over 100+ startups alongside federal agencies such as USDA, DOE, NOAA, etc. 

Kaitlyn earned her B.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She also enjoys mentoring young students from underserved communities through organizations such as Kid City Hope Place and the PROGRESS Mentorship Program, an NSF-funded program for undergraduate women in STEM. In her free time, you can find her dog sitting and reading Asian literature.

Joan, born and bred in Nigeria, earned her B.S. in Botany from the University of Lagos. Motivated by a desire to engage directly with environmental science, she embarked on a career as an Environmental Consultant/Scientist following her undergraduate studies. Over two years in this role, Joan gained invaluable hands-on experience in environmental planning, impact assessment, management, monitoring, and audit across diverse sectors including power, maritime, and oil & gas industries in Nigeria. During her consultancy career, she developed and implemented ESG strategies that align with global sustainability goals for the projects she handled. While implementing these strategies, she was also involved in identifying and creating solutions that address environmental and socioeconomic challenges.

Driven by a profound desire to understand climate change and its effects on both humans and the environment, Joan moved thousands of miles to the US to pursue a master’s program in Botany at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research looked into the intricate relationship between past climates, human activity, wildfires, and vegetation dynamics. Building upon her foundational knowledge, Joan embarked on a doctoral program at UCLA in Geography, where she presently investigates the historical impacts of climate change on California wildfires spanning thousands of years. She is a member of the National Science Policy Network and her research interests involve identifying policies aimed at mitigating these environmental threats. 

Through her academic and professional endeavors, Joan looks to the future, embodying a steadfast and ever-evolving commitment to understanding and addressing the complexities of environmental challenges on both local and global scales. With contagious enthusiasm and a profound love for her field, she continuously seeks new opportunities to expand her knowledge and make a lasting impact to passionately preserving and protecting our planet.

With a career spanning over two decades, Jody Giles is a dedicated, purpose-driven social impact professional committed to making a difference. Grounded in humility, Jody has had the privilege of serving in various roles focused on strategic development, wealth management, and philanthropy advisory.

Currently, Jody serves as the Director of Philanthropy at Catalyst Family Office guiding ultra-high-net-worth families in their philanthropic endeavors, creating innovative solutions for philanthropic giving and facilitating impactful giving strategies across diverse sectors. In the last five years, Jody has played a pivotal role in deploying over $1.1 billion in philanthropic capital, showcasing a deep commitment to driving meaningful change.

Jody is also the co-creator and visionary behind the groundbreaking P150 community, uniting over 300 philanthropic advisors representing funders with $48 billion+ in philanthropic capital. This initiative aims to amplify philanthropic deployment and catalyze systemic change. In this role, Jody has spearheaded initiatives to foster collaboration, drive systemic change in the philanthropic advising field, and maximize community impact.

Jody holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Masters in Professional Accounting, specializing in Tax, from the University of Texas, Austin. And is certified as a CPA, CFP®, and CAP®. When not working, she enjoys spending time (chauffeuring) her twin teenage daughters and hiking with their rescue dog, Sugar.

Anthony is a PhD Candidate in the Department of English at UCLA, with research interests in race/ethnicity, environment, and science/technology/society. His dissertation examines aesthetic representations of energy and its circulation across boundaries of the self, culture, and environment as represented in works by Indigenous and Asian diasporic authors.

Education

• B.A., Willamette University
• M.A., Colorado State Univ Ft Collins

Interest Areas

• Ecocriticism / Environmental Humanities / Biopolitics

Amanda Wagner is the Section Chief of the Environmental Justice, Community Engagement, Tribal Affairs and Resiliency Section in the Plan Formulation Branch of the Planning Division at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). She holds a Doctorate in Environmental Science and Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles, along with a Master of Science in Environmental Health Sciences from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.

Prior to her current role at the Corps, Amanda was a Senior Regulatory Project Manager in the Regulatory Division of the Corps where she evaluated permits for discharges of fill material into Waters of the U.S. In her current role she oversees a team who focus on planning water related projects and studies in partnership with non-federal agencies with a focus on environmental justice and resilience.

Prior to her work at the Corps, Amanda was a Watershed Research Fellow at Heal the Bay, where she developed the River Report Card Pilot Project and established ecological and water quality metrics for the L.A. River revitalization planning. She also worked as a Graduate Student Researcher at UCLA, conducting field work and laboratory work for a thin-layer sediment addition project at a salt marsh in Seal Beach, California. Amanda is actively involved in the UCLA community, is a triple Bruin, and is serving as the President of the Environmental Science and Engineering Program Alumni Society.

Mary Nichols is the former Chair of the California Air Resources Board, where she occupied the attorney seat. In December 2020, Nichols completed her tenure as chair, a position she held since 2007 when she was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. She has served on the Board under Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. (1975–82 and 2010–18), Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (2007–2010), and Governor Gavin Newsom (2019–2020).

Nichols served as the California Secretary for Resources (1979-2003), appointed by Governor Gray Davis. She was responsible for the state’s activities relating to the management, preservation, and enhancement of its natural resources, and for the oversight of the state’s scenic, cultural, and recreational resources.

When not working for the State of California, Mary was a senior staff attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council; Assistant Administrator for U.S. EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation, in the administration of President William Jefferson Clinton; and headed the Institute of Environment and Sustainability at UCLA.

Nichols is Distinguished Counsel for the UCLA School of Law Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment. In February 2009, Nichols was awarded the Attorney of the Year award from California Lawyer Magazine (the CLAY award) for her contributions to environmental law.

Over a career as an environmental lawyer spanning over 45 years, Mary Nichols has played a key role in California and the nation’s progress toward healthy air. She has also led the Board in crafting California’s internationally recognized climate action plan.