College of the Environment Newsletter - Winter 2026
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From the Dean’s Desk
As we conclude another exciting quarter and dive headlong into spring, I am feeling inspired by the passion, curiosity, and commitment of our students.
At the heart of our mission is a deep dedication to student engagement and hands-on experiential learning, values that shape both the learning and the impact we have beyond the classroom. Our students and faculty are not only participating in groundbreaking research, but also taking on projects that address real-world environmental challenges, from local flood recovery to innovative studies on climate resilience and environmental justice.
The stories and achievements featured in this newsletter are a testament to the vibrant academic community we have built together. I am grateful for your ongoing support, which helps empower our students to learn, discover, and make a difference.
Teena Gabrielson,
Dean of the College of the Environment
College News
Ocean researchers investigate the extent and impact of Skagit River flooding
On Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, the day before the Skagit River was expected to crest, a team of WWU scientists navigated around Whidbey Island to observe how the flooding influenced the mixing of fresh and salt water.
Read more about what they were looking for and what they saw
Photo: (from left) Professor Erika McPhee-Shaw, grad student Marisa Viola, Assistant Professor Sam Kastner, and WWU Hydrodynamics Lab Research Technician Amelia Bourne, look at measurements from the CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) instrument. Photo by Shannon Point Marine Center research vessel Captain Nate Schwarck.
Madisyn Cook to present research on how historic redlining continues to shape health disparities
Environmental Policy major Madisyn Cook’s research, “Why Can’t I Breathe Clean Air,” earned her a 2026 DEI Scholarship from the Northwest Association of Environmental Professionals. The award comes with an expense-paid trip to present at the 2026 National Association of Environmental Professionals Annual Conference and Training Symposium in Anchorage, Alaska, in May.
Photo: Madisyn Cook.
Urban Planning and Sustainable Development receives seven-year accreditation
The bachelor’s degree in Urban Planning and Sustainable Development, offered through the Urban and Environmental Planning and Policy Department, received a seven-year accreditation, the longest possible accreditation.
The Planning Accreditation Board noted that Western’s program “has an exemplary record,” especially noting the program’s Diversity Strategic Plan, niche specialization in Tribal and Indigenous Planning and student engagement through activities, events, experiential projects, internships, community projects and the student club.
Photo: UEPP students attended the Washington American Planning Association conference in Tacoma last October.
Grad student Emily Bradford models potential habitat for highly endangered local butterfly
Emily Bradford completed her master’s degree in environmental studies at Western last summer, where she used geography and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) techniques to model the very specific land cover and climate characteristics within the endangered and endemic island marble butterfly’s niche habitat to determine where they might thrive into the future. Her thesis is titled “Finding Space for the Island Marble Butterfly.”
Read more about Bradford’s research and the plight of the island marble
Photo: An adult island marble butterfly at rest. 2008 photo by Merrill Peterson.
Climate anxiety turns to rage in the aftermath of the 2025 LA County urban wildfires
In January 2025, devastating urban wildfires in Los Angeles County burned more than 50,000 acres, killed at least 31 people, displaced more than 200,000 residents and destroyed more than 16,000 buildings. Environmental studies grad student Beau Jay is exploring the emotional impact of animal casualties.
Read about Jay’s work to understand how people's choices are shaped by their connection to animals
Olympic swimmer and grad student Tilali Scanlan takes on coastal hazards in American Samoa
Environmental studies graduate student Tilali Scanlan, of American Samoa, has a comprehensive relationship with the sea. She’s an Olympic swimmer (Tokyo ’20) who trained in the ocean for most of her 10+ year career. Now she studies sea-level rise and worsening coastal hazard impacts on threatened port systems in American Samoa.
The Planet magazine makes waves in national competition
Natural hazards and senior planning students team up to help with flood recovery
Students in Associate Professor of Urban and Environmental Planning and Policy Tammi Laninga’s senior planning studio joined students in Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Rebekah Paci-Green’s natural hazards planning class on Saturday, Jan. 10, to volunteer with flood recovery efforts in Sumas. Last December, devastating flooding from the Nooksack River caused widespread damage in and around Sumas.
Urban planning students in this year’s senior planning studio are working with Sumas, focusing on Cherry Street (State Route 9), the main street that runs through town and ends at the Canadian border, including strategies for flood-proofing. Natural hazards planning students are learning about mitigation strategies for floods, earthquakes, and other natural hazards.
Innovation Incubator: WWU is a top producer of graduates who earn doctorates.
Western ranks third in the U.S. among master’s-granting universities for the number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees, according to the most recent Survey of Earned Doctorates by the National Science Foundation.
Macon Abernathy, above left, got a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science-Toxicology in 2015. He's an associate scientist at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory at Stanford University.
Mariana Cains, above right, received her bachelor’s in Environmental Science-Toxicology from WWU in 2011 and went on to earn a doctorate at Indiana University in environmental science with a focus on risk assessment.
Read more about what WWU alumni are doing with their doctorates
Winter 2026 Environmental, Energy and Sustainability Career Fair
Thanks to everyone who joined us for the annual Environmental, Energy and Sustainability Career Fair in February! More than 325 attendees stopped by to check out the 50+ vendors presenting a wide range of job and internship opportunities. Contact the Career Services Center about participating in a future Career Fair.
Photo by Lauren Reeves.
For Your Bookshelf
Professor Gigi Berardi’s ‘Bianca’s Cure’ is an anthem to women in science
Professor of Urban and Environmental Planning and Policy Gigi Berardi’s latest book, “Bianca’s Cure,” is a historical fiction novel following Renaissance Venetian noblewoman Bianca Cappello’s quest for a malaria cure.
Discover the natural abundance of the Pacific Northwest
Jennifer Hahn’s latest book, “Pacific Harvest: A Northwest Coast Foraging Guide,” introduces readers to more than 70 edible species found along the Pacific Coast, including seaweeds, mushrooms, berries, shellfish, and wild and weedy greens. With more than 60 delicious recipes, beautiful photos, expert tips on sustainable harvesting, 25 essays exploring cultural uses and ecological services (such as what animals and insects eat and shelter in the foods we harvest), profiles of Indigenous food educators, and climate change impacts, “Pacific Harvest” is perfect for both novice and seasoned foragers.
Hahn is an instructor at Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies and a WWU alum, with a bachelor’s degree in Writing Literature and Ecology from Fairhaven College and a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the College of the Environment. This is her third book.
CENV in the Media
These animals can cause big trouble. Why are states unleashing them by the millions?, Vox
Little Squalicum Estuary project models successful coastal habitat restoration, Salish Current
Major ‘megafires’ are now primed to ignite across the US. All it needs is a spark, BBC Science Focus
The island’s foxes have adapted, and are important to our local ecosystem, The Journal of the San Juan Islands
Uncovering the mystery of how algae makes snow green, red or orange, NPR
Book Review: “Bianca’s Cure” by Gigi Berardi, Women Writers, Women’s Books
Gigi Berardi | A young woman in Renaissance Florence pursues early science in a world controlled by men, Fresh Fiction