Jennifer Kane

I’m a third-year graduate student in a dual masters degree program (MS/MPP) in Conservation Biology, Sustainable Development, and Environmental Policy at the University of Maryland. My interests are primarily in conservation communication, environmental education, and social marketing, especially applied to climate change and biodiversity issues.

I’m currently writing up research on behavioral indicators of plastic bag and reusable bag use in Panama and the US, based on a survey that I conducted last year in conjunction with the Center for Risk Communication Research at the University of Maryland and the Panamanian environmental groups Panamá Más Verde and Fundación NATURA. I am also interning at the Pew Environment Group in Washington, DC this summer, working on a global conservation campaign.

Prior to graduate school, I worked as a biologist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, a scientist at a cancer biotechnology research firm, a scientific illustrator, and field director of DrivingVotes.org, a national grassroots voter registration organization that operated during the 2004 presidential election. I hold a BS in Biology and Visual Art from Brown University and a certificate in science communication from UC Santa Cruz.

In my free time, I love to paint watercolors, read, hear live music, travel, and spend time outdoors. I’m really looking forward to meeting everyone and scheming on how to tackle global sustainability issues, especially through behavior change.

Please feel free to check out my artwork here: www.jennifer-kane.com