Anne graduated from Duke in May 2015 with a degree in Environmental Science and Policy. Growing up in Iowa, Anne spent a lot of time outdoors: playing sports, trail running, cross-country skiing, hiking, and camping. In the summer, she helped her dad raise their vegetable garden, picked berries, and tended a few of the fruit trees—activities that provided rich, flavorful, homegrown meals for her family throughout the summer and fall months. It wasn’t until she came to Duke that she began to realize how rare her childhood experiences were. Since college, Anne has worked to encourage people to reconnect with their food and with nature. Anne hopes that by examining her own choices, life challenges, and experiences, she can help others to consider the innumerable ways in which they consciously and unconsciously play an important role in this world. Anne has been a proponent of changing the U.S. food system, and particularly many of the current industrial agricultural practices, for some time. Traveling to Haiti four years ago, she first witnessed the devastating effects of long-term extractive agricultural techniques on human and environmental health. She has committed herself to a career in food and farm policy, and to changing the way food is raised, produced, and valued. On campus, Anne served as president of the Duke student group Food for Thought, an organization dedicated to improving access to local, organic, fair, ecologically sound, and humane food on campus. She has also worked as a member of the Duke Sustainable Food Committee and pursued an academic focus in agricultural sustainability—culminating in an independent study at the Duke Campus Farm. Last summer, Anne participated in the Farming Institute, an intensive 9-week program designed to teach young people the ins and outs of small-scale organic farming. This year, Anne is spending ten months in Costa Rica as a member of the Hart Fellows Program, researching barriers to sustainable food production in the country. Outside of school and work, Anne enjoys running, kayaking, biking, hiking, and all number of other outdoor activities. No matter where she goes, Anne hopes to continue to engage in research, travel, pursue advocacy work, and stay involved with food and farming.