Sydney spent the bulk of her childhood learning and growing under the canopy of the southeastern deciduous forests that make up her home state of Virginia. She earned her B.A. in International Studies with a minor in Environmental Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. Following her undergraduate schooling, she began working as a youth environmental educator, leading her to eventually pursue her M.A. in the University of Utah's Environmental Humanities Program to study how nature-based programs can better support nature-connections across diverse groups. While in Utah, she also co-founded Camping in Color, an overnight program designed for black youth and their families in the Salt Lake Valley area to enhance a sense of belonging, appreciation, and engagement in the outdoors. She joins the Natural Start Alliance team excited to further her work in making quality early childhood environmental education more accessible to all.

Jack Hilgert serves as the Statewide Environmental Education Coordinator for the Oklahoma Conservation Commission and Oklahoma State Coordinator for Project WILD and Project WET. He specializes in K–12 engagement, educator professional learning, and building statewide networks that connect students with hands-on, place-based environmental learning. Jack coordinates environmental education programs for youth, educators, and families while managing a network of volunteer facilitators. His work strengthens school and district partnerships, expands access to environmental education, and supports sustainable programs that reach rural and underserved communities. He also supports Oklahoma Envirothon and serves on the OKAEE Board.

I'm an associate professor of park resource management at Slippery Rock University of PA where I study metrics and outcomes of conservation education and utilize service-learning pedagogies. I teach in our online Environmental Education graduate program and our undergrad Park Resource Mgmt program.

I am a senior Earth and Environmental Science student at Susquehanna University.

I am a senior at Old Dominion University, earning my undergraduate degree in elementary education. I am orginally from Vienna, VA and attended Fairfax County Public Schools. I am currently living in Norfolk, VA as I attend school.

Christopher Davis is a passionate sustainability advocate hailing from Compton, CA driven to ameliorate the impact climate change has on kids by accelerating the adoption of renewable energy systems via educational institutions, while incorporating hands-on STEAM education into secondary and collegiate curricula, especially those in disadvantaged and low-income communities. He is currently a project manager for the renewable energy consulting firm, TRC Companies, and has formally served as Community Coordinator for Color Compton & Assistant Curator at the Compton Art & History Museum. 

Most recently, he curated "We Are The Land: Stories from the Streets and Soil,” an exhibition at the Compton Museum examining Compton’s environmental history, including the consequences of industrialization and environmental neglect, and celebrating the community’s ongoing work toward a healthier and more just future. Through artwork, archival materials, storytelling, and public programming, the exhibition invited residents to see environmental issues not as something distant from their daily lives, but as part of the history, identity, and future of their community.

He is an alumnus of San Diego State University, where he earned his degree in Environmental Science, with minors in Education and Political Science, and he is currently pursuing his Masters in Energy Systems Management at the University of San Francisco. Chris is a devout Christian, ardent Lego enthusiast, and an avid fan of manga, movies, & amusement parks.

I am an educator with Audubon Rockies working towards getting youth and families outdoors since 2006. I operate a bird banding station near my home at Keyhole State Park in northeast Wyoming and create teacher resources for use in and out of the classroom.