After growing up in Denver, Colorado, Shelby received her BA in Environmental Education and Environmental Science from WWU in Bellingham, Washington. A life-long learner, Shelby designed her education and early career to cultivate an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach to addressing the web of social and environmental challenges we face. Since finding a home in Albuquerque in 2017, she has contributed to work in urban conservation, environmental education, ecological restoration, and water resource management. As the Urban Waters Partnership Coordinator with The Nature Conservancy, Shelby engaged in coalition building to advance policy initiatives and on-the-ground conservation projects related to water, urban forestry, biodiversity, equitable access to green space and urban heat impacts. In 2019, Shelby collaborated with a group of youth activists to organize the Uplift Youth Climate Justice Conference. Most recently, as Executive Director of Talking Talons Youth Leadership, Shelby developed and launched a new program model that aims to organize local environmental education partners around a shared vision to foster a long-term, cohesive, student-centered pathway of training and mentorship for cohorts of passionate young environmentalists. She is the current Chair of the Arid LID Coalition, where she facilities a network of green infrastructure advocates to collaborate and share resources across disciplines. In her free time, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, yoga, pottery, experimenting in the kitchen, traveling and quality time with loved ones.