As MD, I executed and delivered client needs and financial objectives for Longevity Partners' US subsidiary.

I led a team of Analysts and Consultants to make the built environment more sustainable. Working closely with our business development team, we co-created client pitches and built new relationships. I liaised with clients to ensure that their needs were not only met, but also exceeded. Reporting directly to the CEO, I supported company-wide objectives and goals to create long-term value and opportunities for the company in the US. I also managed team workloads, forecasted resourcing, and guided hiring requirements.

As Director of Sustainability Studies, I oversaw the undergraduate education in sustainability in the College of Liberal Arts, including all curriculum aspects in Sustainability Studies and Geography at The University of Texas at Austin. We served over 600 majors. I designed, implemented, and managed the internship experience required of all sustainability majors by leveraging my relationships with >60 Austin-based businesses, non-profit organizations, and government agencies. In 2021, our program was identified as #9 in a list of top bachelor's programs in Sustainability by Best Value Schools. Having served on President Hartzell's Sustainability Steering Committee since 2018, I liaised with the Office of Sustainability and the Campus Environmental Center to synergize campus-wide initiatives, activities, and student opportunities. The University received a STARS Gold rating by AASHE in 2020. As an Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Department of Geography and the Environment, I taught Introduction to Sustainability Studies, Landscape Ecology, The Natural Environment (intro to physical geography), and Directed Internships in Sustainability. I also conducted research in land systems science. One project investigated the intersection of livestock grazing, glacier recession, and high mountain wetlands in Peru's Huascaran National Park. The coupled natural human systems research was funded by the National Science Foundation. A second project was in the Aracuania Region of Chile with Lindsey Carte and Alvaro Hofflinger at the Universidad de la Frontera in Temuco. We examined the links between the expansion of non-native forest plantations and internal migration. Check out my Google Scholar profile and feel free to contact me for copies of my articles.

NSF-funded project: CNH-S: Andes Bofedales and Cattle: The Impacts of Changing Hydrology and Glacial Retreat on Community Livelihoods in Peru's Cordillera Blanca.

I directed an independent research project evaluating the effect of climate change on mountain wetlands in Huascaran National Park, Peru. Results of the project have been delivered to decision-makers, land managers, and local communities and will impact future conservation policies.My responsibilities included:Designing and executing field data collection including quantitative and qualitative strategies.Analyzing data using geographic information systems (ArcGIS, Land Change Modeler), remote sensing (ERDAS Imagine), and statistics (Stata, Excel, PC-Ord).Developing international collaborations with universities, NGOs, government agencies, consultants.Creating and delivering presentations in English and Spanish to audiences in the US and Peru.Communicating results and implications to academic audiences.

Grubb & Ellis recruited me to join their recently established Austin office, where I became a regular quarterly top producer. I specialized in representing clients in the acquisition and disposition of land and income-producing commercial properties in central Texas. My clients ranged from high net worth individuals and families to corporations and my book was often $10M at any given time. While at Grubb & Ellis, I earned the prestigious CCIM designation (currently expired), which allowed me to better serve buy-side clients by identifying financial goals, selecting suitable properties, analyzing property financials, assisting in securing debt, negotiating contracts, and facilitating smooth closings. On the sell-side, I represent clients and positioned their investment properties for sale. My value-add was expertise in designing exit strategies for appreciated investment properties through 1031 exchanges. With FINRA Series 22 and 63 licenses (currently expired), I could place clients in institutional-quality real estate via Tenant-In-Common structures.

Polk Real Estate Company was a boutique commercial real estate brokerage that I co-founded. We specialized in representing buyers and sellers of land and investment property in the greater Austin area. I was responsible for all business development, client management, revenue generation, and operations.

At the Wildflower Center, my work focused on conservation of native plant species. I led a feasibility analysis for construction of Texas wild rice refugium in partnership with USFWS. I researched the current status of endangered/rare plant education programs across the US.My outreach activities centered on creating and delivering weekly programming for a high school service learning program. I was also responsible for authoring grant proposals to fund 100% of my salary and benefits.

My career started in banking, where I was selected as 1 of 16 to join an 18-month leadership training program at Texas Commerce Bank. I rotated through all sections of the retail bank to learn from the ground up. During the program, Texas Commerce Bank was acquired by JP Morgan Chase and I co-led a team of 47 coaches who managed a statewide technology and branding conversion to the JP Morgan Chase systems. Following the management training program, I became a Project Analyst in a technology group that supported 110 statewide branches. Our major task at that time was to manage the Y2K change.