I believe learning should be joyful, collaborative, and connected to the real world. My teaching philosophy is grounded in game-based learning, self-directed exploration, and outdoor education. I aim to create a classroom environment where students are not passive recipients of knowledge but co-creators of the learning experience.
In all my courses, I incorporate equity-centered design and inclusive teaching practices that honor the diversity of student backgrounds, learning styles, and aspirations. Whether we’re designing persuasive communication campaigns, debating conservation controversies, or identifying birds on campus walks, I invite students to learn by doing. Assignments are designed not just to build technical skills, but to promote critical thinking, creativity, and a sense of civic responsibility.
Instead of relying on traditional exams or high-stakes assessments, I use a flexible, points-based system inspired by “ungrading” and gamified learning. Students can earn points across a range of activities—such as worksheets, reading reflections, infographic design, or data analysis projects—and build toward their final grade in a way that fits their learning style and personal goals.
This approach reduces stress and encourages students to take ownership of their learning while still upholding high academic standards. I provide detailed rubrics and individualized feedback, and students are encouraged to join office hours if things are not clear.
In this interdisciplinary course, typically offered each year in the fall, I introduce students to the foundational principles of conservation biology and the ways in which science, ethics, and policy intersect in the practice of conserving life on Earth. The class is structured around four core paradigms of conservation thinking: “Nature for Itself,” “Nature for People,” “Nature Despite People,” and “Nature as Culture.”
We explore the history and evolution of protected areas, population viability analysis, extinction risk, resilience theory, ecosystem services, and the integration of social-ecological systems. Students engage with real-world case studies, from game reserves to urban biodiversity, and analyze how conservation challenges are addressed across different cultural, ecological, and economic contexts. The course emphasizes systems thinking, critical reflection, and evidence-based problem solving, preparing students to become informed stewards of biodiversity in a rapidly changing world.
This graduate course, offered in the spring each year, explores how human behavior shapes and is shaped by environmental policies and conservation outcomes. Drawing from behavioral economics, social psychology, and conservation psychology, the course equips students to design and evaluate interventions that promote pro-environmental behavior.
Weekly topics include decision heuristics and biases, framing effects, social norms, moral values, persuasive communication, and pro-social behavior. Students apply these insights through experiential activities, messaging experiments, and campaign design. Assignments include writing an Op-Ed critiquing a current policy through a behavioral lens, and creating a behaviorally informed communication campaign for a real-world environmental issue.
The course is tailored for PhD and Master’s students across ESPM, Forestry, Climate Solutions, and related disciplines. It fosters collaborative learning, participatory classroom dynamics, and peer-led discussions. Ultimately, the course prepares students to become effective communicators, change agents, and policy innovators in the face of global environmental challenges.
As a student in this class you might:
Echeverri Lab: Conserving Wildlife and Human Cultures
Mulford Hall #130
Berkeley, CA, 94709
