2005 - 2007 Duke Fellows

For more information on the Doris Duke Conservation Fellowships, please return to the Doris Duke Conservation Fellows Page.

Sheara Cohen
Landscape Architecture/Resource Policy and Behavior: Resource Planning

Originally from the Washington, D.C. suburbs, Sheara spent the last decade as a policy advocate and organizer in the community development arena in Oregon and Utah. During that time, she founded Utah’s first community land trust, organized coalitions and campaigns that won local, regional, and statewide equitable development policies, served on the board of Portland’s smart growth coalition, and found time for hiking, organic farming, restoration, and art. Sheara’s first inspiration to work for sustainable development arose during a semester in Kenya as an undergraduate history major at Washington University. With a long-time commitment to making conservation and development compatible and a concern for the landscape changes occurring in the U.S. West, she returned to University of Michigan to pursue graduate education in landscape architecture and environmental planning. Sheara is particularly interested in watershed planning, conservation and management of scenic and working landscapes, and stormwater design.  She looks forward to a career as a land use planner, assisting state and local governments in the West manage growth, improve water quality, and protect biodiversity.

Elena Doucet-Bëer
Resource Ecology and Management

Elena grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota and graduated from Lawrence University with a B.A. in Biology and a minor in French. Returning to Minneapolis after graduation, Elena worked for the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA). At MCEA, Elena conducted policy research on the efficacy of state programs to limit agricultural pesticide contamination of groundwater and assisted MCEA’s Legislative and Legal Directors in outreach and strategy development. Following her work at MCEA, Elena transitioned into a role with the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, working to build the capacity of the state’s nonprofit sector. Elena’s work at MCN was broad and included policy research and analysis, coalition building, lobbying, and training. Elena also played a lead role in engaging the state’s nonprofits in voter mobilization during the 2004 election cycle. Elena is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Resource Ecology and Management at the School of Natural Resources and Environment. She is particularly interested in ecosystem ecology, planning and restoration, and biodiversity conservation. Elena looks forward to a career in the nonprofit sector, developing conservation plans that connect habitat preservation with sustainable agriculture and development.

Nicole A. Fernandes
Resource Policy and Behavior: Environmental Education

A southern California native, Nicole attended the University of California, Riverside, where she pursued studies in entomology. During her junior year, Nicole studied tropical ecology in Costa Rica and became convinced that education and community participation were key in promoting stewardship to preserve and restore ecosystems. After graduation, Nicole worked for the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) as a Land Conservation Intern and was soon promoted to Education Coordinator. In this position, Nicole established partnerships with regional and local leaders to develop environmental education programs and create wildlife habits in urban centers. Following her work at NWF, Nicole worked as the Urban Forestry Manager at the Urban Corps of San Diego. Nicole simultaneously broadened her leadership skills as Chairperson of the Golden State Environmental Education Consortium. She worked with colleagues from private, non-profit and public sectors to addresses education reform, ethnic diversity, and leadership issues within the conservation field. At SNRE, Nicole is pursuing a master’s degree in Resource Policy and Behavior with a focus on environmental education. Her master’s group project will examine barriers and opportunities to introducing new audiences to parks under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service in the urban-wildland interface. Nicole’s professional goal is to apply her past experience and new skills and knowledge gained at SNRE to promote cultural diversity with the conservation field and advance progressive environmental education policies while working in the non-profit or public sector.

Heather Gott
Joint Law/SNRE, Resource Policy and Behavior

Heather Gott grew up in rural mid-Michigan and graduated from Western Michigan University with bachelor’s degrees in environmental studies and political science. She became interested in environmental justice issues when studying the environmental health implications of NAFTA on the U.S.-Mexico border. After returning to her hometown, Heather began working with community groups who were addressing issues of industrial contamination in her own hometown. Heather is currently in her second year of graduate studies at the University of Michigan's Law School and School of Natural Resources and Environment. After graduation, she hopes to work for an environmental non-profit, advocating for laws and policies that protect environmental and human health.

 

 

Fred Nelson
Joint Business/SNRE, Resource Policy and Behavior

Fred Nelson grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland and attended Cornell University from 1994-1998, where he was a history major and wrote an undergraduate honors thesis on the history of the Wilderness Act of 1964. After graduating from Cornell, he spent the next seven years working on community-based natural resource management in northern Tanzania, East Africa. He is currently enrolled in the dual degree program between SNRE and the Ross School of Business, administered through the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise. His career interests focus on using market tools and institutional innovations to develop ecologically, economically, and politically sustainable natural resource management practices.