Graduate student Katrina Lewandowski joins the Nature Conservancy's Michigan Board of Trustees

Biological sciences Ph.D. student, Katrina Lewandowski, will be joining the Michigan Board of Trustees of the Nature Conservancy. Katrina is pursuing a dual degree in biology and urban sustainability.

Her research, performed in Dr. Donna Kashian's laboratory, explores the impact of invasive mussels on Great Lakes fish. Katrina's projects also include laboratory studies to determine how blooms of cyanobacteria influence invasive mussels.

The Nature Conservancy's Michigan Board of Trustees created a graduate student trustee fellows program to diversify its leadership. Trustee Fellows are contributing members to the Board. The program is open to graduate students with an interest in conservation and environmental policy.

"The Nature Conservancy has a strong track record of walking the walk when it comes to protecting our land and water, and I am very excited to join TNC's Michigan Board of Trustees," Lewandowski said. "With the growing threat of climate change, it's more important now than ever to work together to find a way to preserve our planet and I am eager to roll up my sleeves, get to work and help make a difference."

Lewandowski is a fellow in the Transformative Research in Urban Sustainability Training (T-RUST) program funded by the National Science Foundation where she collaborates with a team of multidisciplinary graduate students studying green stormwater infrastructure. She, and other members of the team, were recently awarded the Ford College Community Challenge (FC3) fund to install a bioswale and native plants at a local nonprofit.

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Learn more online at nature.org/michigan.