Cultivating Political Literacy and Action:
We need passionate students who can think and act politically to create policy solutions to complex ecological and social problems like climate change and polarization. Fostering students’ passion and helping them develop skills to think and act politically is why I teach. Students learn how to evaluate the interconnected causes of distributional and environmental problems and create political solutions by getting their hands dirty. My courses center applied, student driven learning by having students apply data and research to problems they care about. Then, I build supportive learning environments using responsive teaching and scaffolding. As a first time Instructor of Record during the pandemic, students gave me marks that were above the average for the School (and this school highly values effective teaching) and in 2022-2023 I was recognized as an honorable mention for the Graduate Student Association Teaching Excellence award.
Applied Learning
These are a couple examples of the kinds of projects students create in my classes.
Campaign Advertisement
Policy Transportability
Go Solar
Teaching Experience
I have taught courses and independent sections at the University of California at Santa Barbara at both the undergraduate (lower and upper division) and graduate (Master of Environmental Science and Management Program) levels.
Instructor of Record and/or Co-Developed Class:
PS176 Energy Politics (Political Science, UCSB, 2021)
ESM241 Environmental Policy and Politics (Master of Environmental Science & Management, Bren School, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)
Teaching Assistant:
PS12 Political Science Research Methods (Political Science, UCSB, 2021)
PS15 Introduction to American Politics (Political Science, UCSB, 2019)
PS176 Public Policy Analysis (Political Science, UCSB, 2022)
ES1 Introduction to Environmental Studies (Environmental Studies, UCSB, 2018, 2019, 2020)
ES3 Introduction to the Social and Cultural Environment(Environmental Studies, UCSB, 2020)
ESM210 Business and the Environment (Master of Environmental Science & Management, Bren School, 2022)
Proposed Courses
Climate Change and Energy Policy: Environmental Justice and Reactionary Politics
Teaching Philosophy:
Full Teaching Statement
Other Teaching Experience: Before graduate school I worked for the Colombian government teaching spoken English to teachers and co-teaching English classes in public high schools. Additionally, I taught leadership and environmental science to students in the Colorado backcountry.