Green Cities Sustainability Corps 2012

I am a recent graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Anthropology and a concentration in Environmental Studies. I have lived in the City of Pittsburgh for four years now, and can surely call it "home", however I enjoy life the most when I am in the country. I like being in the mountains doing things like horseback cattle herding, hiking, camping, white water rafting, and learning about and eating edible wilds. When I moved to Pittsburgh I started riding my bike for transportation, and found myself becoming a bicycle advocate. As a founder of Flock of Cycles, I have shared the experience of bicycle advocacy through social bike riding with others. I love riding my bike around the city streets to go to shows or enjoy the rivers.

Originally from New Jersey, John is a graduate of Syracuse University with degrees in Geography, Policy Studies, and Spanish and recently completed a year with the Green Cities program as the Climate Fellow for Green Building Alliance. While there, he spent time launching online media initiatives, spearheading Pittsburgh’s celebration of sustainable transportation, Transportation Exploration, completing and seeking City Council adoption of Pittsburgh Climate Action Plan, Version 2.0, and facilitating and performing research for partnerships with local colleges, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations. As a continuation of that work, he is excited to be working exclusively with the Higher Education Climate Consortium on getting quantifiable reductions in campus emissions and increasing overall campus sustainability. When not in the office, John can be found biking between the school campuses, playing sports and generally being outside, trying a new recipe, or seeking out new roller coasters to ride.

Christine is a recent graduate of the University of Central Florida, where she got her preparedness-for-life training in Cardiopulmonary Sciences. Promptly afterwards, she headed west alone with only a bicycle and her preparedness-for-life certificate, but ended up traveling all over the country and, simultaneously, the human condition. Upon the eventual return to her homeland, she was excited to find the opportunity to work with the Group Against Smog and Pollution by way of the SCA, and did not even unpack her possessions before flying up to Pittsburgh to do just that. Her greatest enduring mission is to make people think about those things they cannot necessarily see with their eyes, resolving to use whatever equipment necessary for the metaphorical playing field. The current playing field is the problem of air quality; the current equipment, her working knowledge of the cardiac and respiratory systems. One day, Christine hopes that it won’t be a stretch for anyone to connect physical actions with their global and intrapersonal significance.

Veronica is the SCA Sustainable Agriculture Fellow working with Penn State Extension and the Pittsburgh Food Policy Council. She is a recent graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University with degrees in Environmental Studies and Geography. Veronica spent her summer in Grand Teton National Park working as an environmental educator and has experience in university and community sustainability, volunteer coordination and leadership, event planning and social justice initiatives. A native to the south hills of Pittsburgh, she is excited to be back in ‘burgh working to grow our city’s local food system. A healthy food system addresses issues of local economic development, community health, and social justice. Veronica is looking forward to getting her hands dirty with all of these issues that help build healthy communities and hopes to continue this work in the future. In her free time Veronica can usually be found outside rock climbing, throwing a disc, playing in the dirt, or adventuring in the woods.

Cate graduated with honors from the University of Pittsburgh in 2010, receiving a B.A. in Urban Studies and a minor in Sociology. During the summer of 2011 she completed a landscape architecture course at Cal Berkeley that reinforced her passion for sustainable design. Cate’s previous experience includes internships with Pittsburgh's Department of City Planning, a community development organization, and a real estate investment trust. She looks forward to connecting residents with resources that improve the livability, sustainability, and value of Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods. In the future, Cate envisions herself in law school studying environmental, energy, and real estate law. When she’s not painting or jogging along the Allegheny River, Cate can be found meandering through the Strip District for fresh picnic ingredients.

Virginia recently moved to Pittsburgh from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to be a part of the Green Cities Corps. She is working with PennFuture on their Black and Gold City Goes Green campaign, which works with communities in Pittsburgh to help residents reduce their greenhouse gas pollution. She graduated from The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee where she received a degree in Environmental Geography. Virginia enjoys biking, gardening, and organizing activities and events where people can interact, learn, and have fun. Virginia hopes this position acts as a stepping stone towards her continued goal of educating communities on the importance of environmental sustainability.

Originally from Connecticut, Kelly comes to the SCA with experiences ranging from environmental education and community organizing to basic science research for renewable energy systems. She holds a BA in Physics from Colgate University and an MSc in Sustainable Energy Systems from the University of Edinburgh. In the recent past, she has worked for the National Renewable Energy Lab, the University of Illinois and the YMCA. Kelly loves caving, hiking, rock climbing, eating local food, dancing, playing her bagpipes, watching animated movies and figuring out how to be a confident bike commuter in Pittsburgh. She looks forward to driving the creation of a sustainable 2030 District in downtown Pittsburgh with the rest of the staff at the Green Building Alliance.

Tori comes to the Green Cities team after graduating from the University of Vermont with a BA in Anthropology and Sociology and a minor in Nutrition and Food Sciences. After graduating college, Tori decided to spend some time WWOOFing and traveling throughout New Zealand and Europe where she really became aware of environmental issues. She is originally from Vermont, and got brought up to appreciate all that nature provides. Tori is passionate about the environment, gardening and sustainable food systems. Her personal interests include, but are not limited to hiking, camping, music, sports, traveling and camp fires. Through her fellowship with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, Tori hopes to gain experience implementing a comprehensive recycling program, as well as supporting the Food Bank to produce real reductions in resource use and greenhouse gas emissions, while promoting sustainable business practices. After her fellowship with the SCA, she hopes to continue to make a significant impact on our region's sustainability.