It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences. -Audre Lorde
No movement will succeed if it cannot paint a picture of a world people want to go to – Dr. Martin Luther King, JR.
I am guided in my research by a transdiscliplinary, critical, participatory, and innovative agenda to support community-driven climate action and sustainability work at the local, regional, and global level.
PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH: Participatory Action Research (PAR) is at the heart of my work. Key overarching questions for me include how can we can expand who can produce research, what constitutes research, knowledge mobilization and exchanges. I view participatory action research (PAR) as a key force in these knowledge efforts where I work directly with community stakeholders on the research design, analysis, reporting, and implementation with a commitment to doing research and designing programming that adds meaning and value to strategic planning, reflection and evaluation, theory of change and action efforts in community-driven sustainability work.
CONSERVATION, REGENERATIVE ECONOMIES and WELL BEING: In 2018-2019, I was a research affiliate with the Monteverde Institute (MVI) in Costa Rica, where I worked with a team of stakeholders from the Bellbird Biological Corridor in Costa Rica to examine the relationship between regenerative economies, community well-being, and conservation. In particular, I conducted a community needs and opportunities assessment in 5 regions of the corridor to examine how sustainable local economies could promote more diverse participation, equity, and connectivity between producers and consumers. 
SOUTH COAST GROWS: In 2016-2017, I was the principal investigator on two grants grounded in participatory action research – UMass President’s Creative Economy Fund and UMass Medical School Community Research Innovative Scholars Program (CRISP). Through these projects, we brought together multiple stakeholders (local farmers, food relief workers, educators, students, and community organizers) to engage in a participatory planning process to launch a community garden at our university and New Bedford High School.