The Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute has an AmeriCorps program that currently serves communities all over the state of Idaho as well as the greater Portland region. Through partnerships with schools, community-based organizations and government agencies, PCEI addresses critical environmental and equity issues in the areas of healthy watersheds, energy and resource conservation, environmental education and outreach, as well as sustainable community development.
National and Community Service programs meet critical needs in areas such as education, public safety, health and the environment through partnerships with public agencies, non-profits, faith-based and other local organizations.
Meet Our 2023-2024 Members!
Dorian Curtin, Environmental Education Instructor, Boise Urban Garden School
Dorian has a BS in environmental science and resource management from California State University, Channel Islands. Being born with an identical twin gave Dorian an interest in genetics that originated early, but through her early educational career this has gradually evolved to focus on conservation genetics. Dorian is fascinated by the relationships between selection, anthropogenic threats, and changing migration patterns. She is really interested in the hybridization of animals, both naturally and anthropogenically caused. Dorian served in City of Vancouver, Washington’s Urban Forestry Program and learned about the interface between the natural and urban ecosystems. She is now in Boise to further her knowledge of the natural world and she looks forward to her future!
Laurie Haener, Palouse Roots Educator, Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute
Laurie Haener is an artist and gardener. He comes to Palouse Roots with a background in fine arts and ecological restoration. His teaching style emphasizes playful curiosity, learning by doing, and embracing the artist in everyone. Lately he has been working on embroidery and planning next year’s vegetable garden.
Iris Henderson, Volunteer Services Assistant, The Peregrine Fund
Iris was born and raised in Boise, spending time in the foothills, lakes, and mountains of Idaho and Eastern Oregon. She became intrigued by birds at a young age – an interest which continues today. Throughout most of her teen years, she worked with the Intermountain Bird Observatory at Boise State University as a data supervisor for the hummingbird banding project. Iris chose to attend Pitzer College in Southern California, largely because of the Environmental Analysis major at the Claremont Colleges. Environmental Analysis is a unique and interdisciplinary major, applying approaches in the social sciences, humanities, arts, and natural sciences. Iris found particular interest in environmental justice, conservation, water politics, and Indigenous land use practices while in college. She graduated in December 2022 and plans to continue working to connect communities with their natural surroundings and fostering a sense of wonder and love for the natural world. Outside of work, Iris enjoys reading, painting, and swimming in the closest body of water.
Alexandra Koubek, Restoration Technician, Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute
While growing up in rural Illinois, Alexandra developed passions for nature and serving her community as a lifelong member and executive officer of her 4-H club. She explored these passions at Northern Illinois University, from which she graduated with honors in May 2023, obtaining a B.S. in Environmental Studies with a specialization in Biodiversity and Restoration and minors in Biological Sciences and Anthropology. Through her education, Alexandra gained a particular interest in the relationship between humans and the natural world. In the future she would like to work on projects that foster the connection between traditional ecological knowledge and modern science to achieve more meaningful and effective environmental management and restoration. She is excited to begin her professional career as a restoration technician at PCEI with hands-on restoration projects and aims to work with the local community to foster a more connected relationship between people and the environment.
Jasper Lee, Restoration Technician, Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute
Born in eastern Tennessee and raised in the Appalachian Mountains, Jasper has always loved the outdoors. Moving from place to place at a young age, the Finger Lakes of New York, the deep wooded hills Central Pennsylvania, dry California Valleys, and the rolling wheat fields of the Palouse, Jasper never stopped exploring. While living and working on an organic farm in California, he was exposed to nature conservation management practices, and developed a passion for environmental restoration. Moving north to the panhandle of Idaho allowed him to develop this passion through practical and educational experiences. Jasper has many interests, many of them revolving around his love of nature and the outdoors, that he is deeply passionate about. Historical boat building, fermentation, and riparian restoration, to name a few. With a healthy obsession for outdoor sports, Jasper can be found hiking, biking, or occasionally, climbing, the Northwest.
Kalli Proffitt, Environmental Education Instructor, Foothills Learning Center
Kalli is an AmeriCorps member for Foothills Learning Center and served a previous term at Boise Urban Garden School, both in Boise. Her passion is herpetology and teaching others the wonders of herpetofauna. She grew up and worked on an organic crop farm in Missouri. Agricultural communities fostered a scientific curiosity for the sustainable functions of our environment. Her adventures involved living and working with a diversity of wildlife species in ecosystems across this country. In 2019 she moved to Idaho to finish her bachelor’s degree in Biology: Ecology, Evolution, and Behavioral Emphasis at Boise State University. Her career path is currently a wildlife research scientist, finishing a project with U.S.G.S.
Kalli’s favorite outdoor activity is hiking with the dogs. They love the Red Cliffs trail and other areas in the Treasure Valley. Other activities include cooking with her boyfriend, interacting with her lizards, and enjoying her down time.
She is grateful for the opportunity to expand people’s experience with nature; AmeriCorps in partnership with these outdoor educational facilities are creating a balance for all species on this planet.
“The future is in our hands to make it what we will.” – Laura Ingalls Wilder”
Allison Rafert (she/her), Environmental Education Instructor, Boise Urban Garden School
Growing up in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains in Washington State, Allison has always loved getting up close and personal with nature. When deciding where to attend college, she traded her mountain backdrop for the prairies of Minnesota and graduated with a degree in environmental studies and political science from St. Olaf College. Her undergraduate research largely focused on social welfare programs, food justice, international reparations, and the intersections between humans, the environment, and art. She has previously interned with the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division in Washington, D.C., and she recently participated as a post-graduate in an environmental humanities seminar with the University of Minnesota and the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society. Allison hopes to continue studying the environment from a social justice perspective in graduate school and during her time at Boise Urban Garden School. In her free time, she enjoys thru hiking, writing, making art, and pretending she can play the guitar.
Josilyn Watson, Water Conservation Project Coordinator, Palouse Basin Aquifer Committee
Whether teaching preschoolers to garden, substituting for the local school district, or volunteering with local, non-partisan political organizations, Josilyn loves giving back to her community. Born in the rolling hills of the Palouse region, she is familiar with the unique physical and cultural landscape of the area. Josilyn recently received her BS in Earth and Environmental Sciences from Washington State University, serving as a College of Arts and Sciences Student Ambassador and Granger Cobb Corporate Scholar. When not working, she enjoys spending time with her dog, trying new foods, and listening to podcasts. Josilyn is passionate about sustainability and believes we need to see a strengthening of community resilience to achieve real natural resource use change.
Visit the Confluence Environmental Center page to view members in Portland, OR.