2025 has been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions, life changes, growth, and learning. If there’s one thing I’m taking away from this year, it’s a renewed and expanded appreciation for resilience in all forms. And now that I’ve completed my first semester of grad school, I think it’s high time for a moment of reflection, of which I’ll present the highlights here.

Fall 2024 was quite the time to start the graduate application process, with so much uncertainty around funding, lab openings, and the long-term fate of science in the United States. What already felt like a major branch point in my life suddenly also became a time of collective fear, mourning, and anger throughout much of the country.

As it says on this site’s homepage, I’ve created Wild Directions to serve as a sort of digital watering hole–a place for thinkers, creatives, and curious people of all kinds to learn about science and conservation practice.