Roeder awarded 2023 Switzer Environmental Fellowship
Mackenzie “Kenzie” Roeder, a Ph.D. student studying ecology and environmental science at the University of Maine, is one of 20 environmental scholars to receive the 2023 Switzer Environmental Fellowship.
The fellowship is a program of the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation that awards environmental leaders a $17,000 cash award and leadership training to support their graduate studies and career development at 16 universities in New England and California.
Switzer Fellows are chosen based on demonstrated innovation and collaboration, as well as commitment to advance social equity as a fundamental part of their environmental work. Roeder and the other 2023 Switzer Fellows join a network of over 700 Switzer Fellows working across the U.S. and around the world.
Roeder’s research focuses on the ecology and conservation of tidal saltmarsh endemic birds, integrating genomic techniques with measures of performance and fitness to understand the genomic architecture underlying the birds’ complex traits. She is a member of both the Saltmarsh Habitat and Avian Research Program (SHARP) and the National Science Foundation-funded Genomic Ecology of Coastal Organisms (GECO) working group. Beyond the realm of research, Kenzie is deeply committed to pedagogy and community outreach. She is on the leadership team of her local chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and is the Program Manager at Hirundo Wildlife Refuge.
During their fellowship year, Switzer Fellows cultivate their personal leadership skills toward advancing social equity, build relationships and expand their networks through shared experiences with the 2023 cohort and the Switzer Network. Switzer Fellows receive support throughout their careers to pursue interdisciplinary and collaborative work, positioning them for leadership in the nonprofit, government, philanthropic, private and academic sectors.