Emma Vautour is a 2014 graduate of Messiah College, where she studied environmental science and adventure education.
Emma’s primary interest lies in restoration ecology and design, as well as conservation. She has spent the last two summers working with native plants in both Michigan and Pennsylvania, but during her time at school studied everything from bromeliad frogs in Panama to outdoor education on a National Outdoor Leadership School course in Wyoming.
Emma enjoys traveling, backpacking, rock climbing and yoga. She’s looking forward to experiencing winter life on the prairie in all its challenges and rewards.
Throughout her undergrad, she worked as a research assistant on projects pertaining to climate change in the northern Ontario boreal forest, the Ontario Cosmetic Pesticide Ban and for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture. Elisabeth spent this past summer completing an internship with the Sea Turtle Association of Japan and hiking around southern Australia.
Having explored mountains, lava fields, deserts, forests and coastal areas around the world, Elisabeth looks forward to spending time in winter on the American Prairie Reserve.
Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Zach McKeown’s two favorite things are soccer and the camaraderie formed during backpacking trips.
After graduating college with a degree in Biology, Zach went directly into the Peace Corps. He was evacuated out of Liberia two months after arrival due to the Ebola outbreak. The abrupt change in his plans left him perplexed about what to do, but excited to get a variety of interesting work experiences under his belt.
Zach aims to learn useful biology skills during his time on APR, and apply it to future Peace Corps service.