I completed a PhD in Forest Resources at the University of Georgia in 2012. The name of the program is about as broad as my interests, but my dissertation research focused on building a better tree (functional genomics) and wondering how we define "better" (environmental ethics). My earlier research was related to the growth and phytochemistry of plants under spaceflight conditions, a path I started on while completing a M.S. in Plant Biology at UMass Amherst.