Claudia Mitchell-Kernan (she/her) is Faculty Emeritus and former Vice Chancellor of Graduate Studies at UCLA. As Vice Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Dean of the Graduate Division of UCLA, she served as the campus-wide advocate for the advancement of graduate education for 21 years. During this period, she worked to ensure that standards of excellence, fairness, and equity were maintained across all graduate programs. Over the course of her career as an anthropologist, she conducted research in Samoa, Belize, Jamaica, and the United States. Concurrent with her administrative responsibilities, she was a professor in the departments of Anthropology and Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA and Harvard University. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Indiana University. Before coming to UCLA in 1973, she was a member of the faculty at Harvard University.
Roger Wakimoto
Roger Wakimoto (he/him) became the UCLA Vice Chancellor for Research on July 1, 2017. Roger is an accomplished atmospheric scientist specializing in research on mesoscale meteorology, particularly severe convective storms, and radar meteorology. He was a member of the UCLA atmospheric sciences faculty in 1983 – 2005, serving as Chair in 1996-2000. After his tenure at UCLA, Roger served as the Director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Earth Observing Laboratory.. He most recently served as Assistant Director of the National Science Foundation Directorate for Geosciences, where he led a division that supported atmospheric, geospace, polar, earth, and ocean sciences with a $1.3 billion annual budget. Roger received his bachelor’s degree with honors and great distinction in meteorology from San Jose State University, and he earned his Ph.D. in geophysical sciences from the University of Chicago.
Tomoko Kanda
Tomoko Kanda is currently a master student in Urban Planning Department at UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. Her research interests include the public-private partnership in the transportation field, and an application of new technologies to the existing transit system to make urban transportation more sustainable and equitable. She is from Tokyo, where she previously worked at Accenture strategy as a management consultant for five years. While in Accenture, she conducted cost and benefit analysis of sustainable water and energy use solutions for Smart City in South East Asia. She also has experience in business model design and market analysis of new mobility services.
She completed her B.A. and M.A. in Political Science and Latin American Studies at the University of Tokyo.
Anna Johnson
Anna graduated as an Environmental Science and Political Science double major with a minor in Environmental Systems and Society. Growing up in Oakland, California, she has always had an affinity for the natural world and environmentalism. She has gained notable experience through her internship at the California State Water Board Stormwater Division, international field research, participation at a PERC colloquium, and research at UCLA. After graduation, she hopes to complete a dual degree with a masters in Environmental Science and an MBA, facilitating a career in corporate sustainability. Outside of her academic endeavors, you may find Anna running, hiking, going to concerts, traveling, or spending time with her friends.
Currently Anna holds a position as an Environmental Analyst at SWAPE.
Owen Emerson
Owen majored in Geography and Environmental Studies with a minor in Environmental Systems and Society. He’s interested in environmental production chain analysis and how companies can mitigate their environmental footprint through sustainable business management. In addition to CPP, Owen followed his passion for sustainability through Sustainability Action Research. During his time at UCLA, Owen worked as a wilderness guide for Outdoor Adventures, and as a photo editor and staff photographer for The Daily Bruin. Owen was also a photographer for The City of Los Angeles in the Bureu of Engineering, documenting engineering projects and construction sites throughout the LA area, with a focus on the revitalization of the LA River. After college he hopes to pursue a career in environmental business management and work as a photographer.
Kelsey Hartfelder
Kelsey graduated from the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability (IoES) at UCLA, majoring in Environmental Science and minoring in Geography/Environmental Studies. She found her passion for sustainability while working as a high school intern for an aquarium and coastal education center on Long Island Sound in Connecticut. Since then, she has been pursuing sustainability by traveling to the University of Cape Town to take courses in atmospheric science and urban sustainability and doing food waste research through IoES’s Sustainability Action Research (SAR). During her spare time, you can find her on campus giving tours of UCLA, helping to coordinate Coastalong, UCLA’s bike-powered music festival and sustainability fair, and dancing with NSU Modern hip hop team.
Kelsey now holds a position as an Environmental Analyst at SWAPE.
Shanna Shaked
Dr. Shaked is a leader at UCLA in the use of evidence-based teaching techniques, particularly those that aid in the retention of underrepresented groups. She has also pioneered a range of interdisciplinary teaching collaborations with faculty across the UCLA Physical and Life Sciences.
After earning her B.S. and B.A. in Physics, Astronomy and Mathematics from the University of Arizona, she received a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from the University of Michigan and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Ithaca College. Her research experience ranges across astrophysics, biophysics, environmental physics, pollutant modeling, sustainability, and ultimately physics education research. At UCLA, Dr. Shaked has initiated a range of evidence-based teaching techniques, such as an interdisciplinary undergraduate Learning Assistant program to promote active learning and inclusivity in large lecture courses. She is an expert in the implementation of pre- and post-tests and surveys to assess the effectiveness such educational interventions.
The overall focus of Dr. Shaked’s efforts in CEILS is to identify and address the educational needs and interests of Physical Science faculty, and in so doing, support the academic success of all UCLA students. Connect with Shanna at shaked@ceils.ucla.edu.
Anthony Giordano
Kaitlyn DeShon
Kaitlyn DeShon is a fourth-year undergraduate English major and Film minor who serves as writer, photographer and videographer for IoES, where she enjoys bringing pressing environmental research into more accessible spaces. Currently pursuing a career in film, she also spends much of her time producing films as Cinematic Affairs Chair for UCLA’s professional cinema fraternity, Delta Kappa Alpha, and providing media coverage for events as Campus Events Commission’s Director of Media Production.
Jason Beard
Jason graduated as an environmental studies major with a minor in geographic information systems. He is from the Bay Area and moved to Los Angeles to take classes and play rugby at UCLA. His passion for the environment started as a child spending much of his time exploring the outdoors. Last summer, Jason worked for a program called ‘Tiny Treks’ where he guided children on hikes around various parks and forests in the Bay Area.