June 24, 2024
In Spring 2024, the Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center piloted a virtual Mentoring Program that paired graduate students and postdoctoral researchers with climate adaptation professionals. The program was developed with input from MW CASC-affiliated students and early career researchers and designed to provide guidance as they prepare for transitions into long-term careers.
Eleven pairs of mentors and mentees participated in the three-month program. After a full group orientation meeting, mentoring pairs met individually about once a month to have mutually-beneficial conversations related to translating research into action, effective science communication, non-academic careers, and more.
We asked two mentors – Ted Haffner and Jaymi LeBrun – and two mentees – Elyssa McCulloch and Ichchha Thapa – to reflect on their experiences in the program. Read their responses below and keep an eye out for news of the next iteration of the MW CASC Mentoring Program!
Ted Haffner
Steering Committee Member and Climate Change Goal Team Lead for Chicago Wilderness Alliance
Briefly, can you share a little bit about yourself and your background?
I grew up, currently work, and live in Chicago. My professional background is in landscape architecture and horticulture, with a specialization in urban and functional landscapes – landscapes and spaces that derive benefits other than aesthetics. I have morphed this training into creating and implementing strategies for both place- and nature-based solutions to climate change.
What motivated you to participate in this program?
I was motivated to participate for several reasons. I personally have never had a strong mentor. I have participated as a mentor in a few programs, but none of them have been successful in my mind – the MW CASC Mentoring Program seemed well thought out and well structured, and I was excited to see what an effective and efficient mentoring program might look like.
The Chicago Wilderness Alliance region is on the cusp of losing a number of successful individuals to retirement. These individuals have not, in my opinion, prepared the younger generation properly for succession. I was motivated to participate, in part, due to the frequent requests for succession planning and mentoring from CWA’s partners.
Was there anything surprising about your conversations with your mentee? Did you learn anything from them?
I learned a ton from my mentee, and I hope she learned as much from me. I was also surprised by the success of the program and how it was structured, especially based on my past experiences with mentor/mentee programs. The resources we were provided were fantastic and I thought the mandate to meet three times was just enough to establish a relationship that I hope will continue.
What did you find rewarding about this experience?
I found the connection and conversations rewarding. I also thought the pre- and post- meetings set up by the MW CASC to introduce and debrief were equally helpful. I have shared this experience with others at Chicago Wilderness Alliance and they are considering implementing a similar program using the MW CASC’s as a model.
What’s one thing you would tell someone interested in participating in this program as a mentor?
Participate and make time to authentically and legitimately connect! School and life are busy, but this is a helpful way to further networks and approach new opportunities with a growth mindset. The investment of time of approximately a day is well worth any returns from the program, assuming you match well and the mentee takes the opportunity seriously, as mine did.
Elyssa McCulloch, Mentee
Graduate Student, Missouri Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Unit - University of Missouri
Briefly, can you share a little bit about yourself and your background?
I am from Mt. Iron, Minnesota, a small mining town in the northern part of the state. I am currently working towards a Ph.D. in Natural Resources with an emphasis on Water Resources. I am researching how wetland ecosystems in the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States respond to climate change.
What motivated you to participate in this program?
I find mentorship very rewarding in general through the one-on-one interactions and sharing of perspectives. I was especially interested in the MW CASC’s Mentoring Program Mentorship because of the nature of the organization, the breadth of experience it draws, and the shared vision of the people I have already encountered who are a part of it.
What’s something your mentor did or shared that was especially helpful to you?
My mentor shared what the process of decision-making for management looked like for various projects she is involved in, what tools they use, and what that process looked like from the basic-science and applied science aspects. As a graduate student trying to bridge this gap I found this insight especially helpful, and it highlighted how invaluable communication is between parties.
We used the program’s mentoring resources to guide some of our conversations, but often found ourselves straying into many topics that I had not anticipated but appreciated deeply.
How might your experience in this program influence your work or career path?
I have already begun to formulate the last chapter of my dissertation with the concepts we talked about in mind. Having those conversations with someone involved in management brought so much energy back into my project, and bolstered my confidence to reach out and make more connections with people.
What’s one thing you would tell someone interested in participating in this program as a mentee?
This is a great opportunity – it is wonderful to be a part of a group of people who are all leaning into participating and want the best for each other.
Jaymi LeBrun, Mentor
Inventory and Monitoring Coordinator, National Wildlife Refuge System, Midwest Region 3
Briefly, can you share a little bit about yourself and your background?
I am the Inventory and Monitoring Coordinator and Branch Lead for the Division of Natural Resource and Conservation Planning in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the Midwest region.
I'm originally from the Midwest – I did my undergrad at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earned my master's at Iowa State University, and then received my PhD at the University of Missouri. While I was at the University of Missouri, I was looking at climate change effects on forest birds, how forest management impacts those species into the future, and how we can prepare and manage for climate change in forests. At that time, I was a climate fellow with the Northeast Climate Adaptation Science Center.
When I first came to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2016, I worked for the mountain prairie region. I worked in a group that’s unique within the agency – the Habitat and Population Evaluation Team. I did a lot of landscape modeling for that group in the Prairie Pothole Region. For the past few years, I’ve been in this position within the refuge program in which I coordinate efforts across all our Midwest region refuges. We're kind of the regional support to our station biologists out in the field.
What motivated you to participate in this program?
It was kind of about giving back. I was part of the Northeast CASC and that was a really awesome experience for me. They provided so much to me and helped with understanding career paths in agencies vs. academia. It helped me get to the position I am in today.
I'm relatively new to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, so I have the perspective of someone both inside and outside of the agency. I do a lot of hiring and recruiting of individuals into the Service and felt like this was a really good opportunity to share that information.
Did you have previous experience as a mentor or mentee in other programs? If so, how did that inform how you approached your mentor role?
I’ve never had a traditional mentoring experience where I was the mentee, but I went through a mentoring training experience when I was at the University of Missouri.
The cohort of people that I kind of went to school kind of mentors each other because we're all in the same boat. I've found a lot of value in having people going through the same things I am, like coming out of school and going to work again. We share our experiences and support each other through those kinds of transitions.
Was there anything surprising about your conversations with your mentee? Did you learn anything from them?
I've seen some traditional mentor-mentee relationships before where, because the mentor is so far removed from the world the mentee is in, there’s a disconnect and the advice they share is kind of stale. One of pieces of feedback I received from my mentee was wanting a mentor who could put themselves in the mentee’s shoes. That was crucial in our relationship, that I really took the time to consider her perspective. People coming out of school right now, it’s a very different experience than it used to be. Mentor’s need to be able to relate to mentees in a way that's meaningful for them.
Is there anything in particular that you found rewarding about participating in this program?
It was great to provide some relevant information to my mentee, stuff that could help her grow in her thinking about the work she does and how meaningful it is. When you're in school, especially a PhD or anywhere in academia, you’re often reminded that you don't know anything. I tried to show her that she has things to offer, that her skillset is needed. And that she can think more broadly about her experience and all these different things that add up to this greater picture of who she is.
We're trying to keep engaged beyond the formal end of the Mentoring Program. She's looking at interviewing and I'm really excited to help pump her up for those experiences.
What’s one thing you would tell someone interested in participating in this program as a mentor?
I think one of the things that I did with my mentee was to help boost her confidence in who she is as a person. Sometimes, someone is reaching out through a program like this because they’re kind of struggling. They need somebody to pull them out of that mindset and share their own truth with them – like, it’s not easy and maybe it kind of sucks right now, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel and here are some things to work toward. That part of the mentoring relationship can be something they absolutely need.
Anything else that you want to share?
I think it's really important that we connect with recent graduates like this, especially if you have agency experience. There isn’t a lot of space right now in academia for conversations about non-academic career paths, and stepping outside of that world can be scary. It’s important to them to understand that they haven’t failed if they choose a non-academic career, that this work is just as valuable.
We also need to be making these connections because recent graduates, new people with different ideas coming into the different agencies help us grow and avoid becoming stagnant and stale.
Ichchha Thapa, Mentee
PhD Student, Department of Forestry at Michigan State University
Briefly, can you share a little bit about yourself and your background?
I am a second-year PhD student in the Department of Forestry at Michigan State University, with a focus on Forest Resource Economics and Human Dimensions of Forestry. I hold an MS in Environmental Science from Tribhuvan University in Nepal and another MS from Indiana State University. I am originally from Nepal, where I spent four working with the remote mountain communities on natural resource management tied to climate adaptation and livelihoods.
My research focuses on assessing the demand and supply for emerging markets for mass timber manufacturing in Michigan and the Great Lakes region. My goal is to offer insights into future market direction and policies for advancing mass timber momentum in our region.
In my free time I enjoy walks in the woods and volunteering to remove invasive species in East Lansing parks.
What motivated you to participate in this program?
I am always interested in opportunities to build new skills and connections to advance my professional career. I am committed to improving my networking and communication skills by interacting with a diverse group of peers and professionals from various backgrounds, career stages, cultures, and perspectives within the forestry and natural resources sector.
What’s something your mentor did or shared that was especially helpful to you?
My mentor and I had a great mentoring relationship. He introduced me to two professionals working in the field directly related to my potential career. Additionally, learning about his career pathways, decisions shaping those career paths, the skills and personality traits needed, challenges faced, and accomplishments achieved was greatly helpful.
Was there anything surprising about your conversations with your mentor?
I was astonished to find out that my mentor has visited my home country, Nepal.
What’s one thing you would tell someone interested in participating in this program as a mentee?
The MW CASC mentoring program is a great opportunity to connect with professionals and learn from their rich experiences along their academic, research, and professional paths. This greatly helped me understand what to consider when choosing a career path and working towards my professional goal.