Our Former VISTA Sierra Gladfelter listed as a Research Associate at the Institute for Social and Environmental Transition (ISET) – International

Sierra Gladfelter is currently completing her Master’s degree in Geography and a Certificate in Development Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her research interests include the politics of knowledge in climate adaptation and development interventions. Specifically, she is interested in studying the extent to which local knowledge and priorities are actively integrated into or excluded from the design and implementation of such programs. While her thesis examines interventions to assist communities in coping with chronic flooding along the Karnali-Ghaghara River in Nepal and northern India, Sierra has also studied flooding and the uneven process of recovery along rivers in Zambia and the United States with the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre and ISET-International. However, it was Sierra’s experience working for the Schuylkill Headwaters Association, a small watershed NGO serving communities impacted by abandoned mine drainage in Pennsylvania’s Appalachian mountains, that inspired her to pursue a career engaged in research and tangible work guided by local visions and communities’ active participation.
Contact Sierra: Sierra.Gladfelter@colorado.edu