Olowalu — Maui, HI

Hi! My name is Jadda. I am a Bellwether Postdoctoral Scholar at the School of Information at UC Berkeley. My work sits at the intersection of participatory research, critical place-based pedagogy, and environmental stewardship. I collaborate across sectors to establish partnerships that center on local, place-specific knowledge to address broader environmental concerns and issues of justice. My work examines how educational institutions can support community-led initiatives by fostering learning environments where students work alongside local experts to advance community-identified goals, developing as environmental stewards and practitioners in the process. This work aims to foster reciprocal partnerships in which communities define research priorities, shape educational programs, and drive collective action to achieve social-ecological resilience.

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Elementary School Garden — Maui, HI

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Agriculture and Food security Volunteer Training (US Peace Corps) — Panauti, Nepal

Education

Ph.D., Science and Agricultural Education, University of California, Davis — Patwin Land | Davis​, CA

Master of Science, Environmental Studies (2019), Green Mountain College — Mohican Land | Poultney, VT

Bachelor of Science, Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems (2014), University of California, Davis — Patwin Land | Davis​, CA

Certificate of Culinary Arts (2009), Napa Valley College — Miwok Land | St. Helena, CA.

 

Service

Volunteer, Lisjan Nation Curriculum Collective, Sogorea Te’ Land Trust | urban Indigenous women-led land trust that facilitates the return of Indigenous land to Indigenous people, Oakland, CA (2026-present)

Internship Mentor, Environmental Education, Undergraduate Honors Program, UC Davis (Fall 2025)

Center for Land-based Learning, Student Landowner Education for Watershed Stewardship (SLEWS) Program Mentor — Woodland, California (2025-2026)

Research Advisor to a 12th-grade student studying vegetation assessments in Maui, Hawaii (2025-2026)

Research Advisor to an 11th-grade student studying vegetation assessments in Maui, Hawaii (2024-2025)

Peer Reviewer, Citizen Science: Theory and Practice (Present)

Convener, American Geophysical Union (AGU), Science and Society: Community and Citizen Science — Washington D.C. (2024)

Center for Land-based Learning, Student Landowner Education for Watershed Stewardship (SLEWS) Program Mentor — Woodland, California (2023-2024)

Kīhei Charter School, Environmental Club Advisor — Maui, Hawaiʻi (2021 - 2022)

Global Student Embassy, Campus Representative, University of California Davis — Davis, California / Boaco, Nicaragua (2013-2014)

Dining Services, University of California Davis, Local Foodways and Farmers Market Coordinator — Davis, California (2013)

University of California Davis, Ecological Garden Assistant — Davis, California (2012)

Edible Magazine (Shasta-Butte), Journalist (2011-2012)

World Watch Institute, Nourishing the Planet Project, Research Journalist — Washington D.C. (2011)

 

Research Projects

Project title: Hoʻomalu ʻĀina Maui (Protecting the land of Maui) (Dissertation Research)

The Hoʻomalu ʻĀina Maui project aims to empower high school students in Maui, Hawaiʻi, with knowledge and skills for wildfire mitigation and social-ecological resilience. Following the catastrophic 2023 Lahaina fire, this project integrates Traditional Ecological Knowledge with Western science in a field ecology class. Students engage in hands-on activities like removing invasive species and outplanting native species to create a more fire-resistant landscape. Our research examines how participation influences students’ connection to place, Kanaka ʻŌiwi (Native Hawaiian) culture, and environmental science agency. This project incorporates a community-based participatory approach to guide the collaboration between students, educators, cultural practitioners, ecologists, and education researchers. This study employs mixed methods to assess the program’s impact. This project has received support from multiple groups at UC Davis, including: the Institute of the Environment, the Office of Public Scholarship and Engagement, Global Affairs, the School of Education, and the Center for Community and Citizen Science.

To learn more about this project, please visit:

Project title: Marine Protected Area (MPA) Watch

Position: Graduate Student Researcher (2023 - Present)

MPA Watch is a statewide collaboration of 12 organizations conducting community science monitoring within and outside California's network of 124 marine protected areas. MPA Watch monitors 75 MPAs (249,146 acres in total). Since its inception in 2008, MPA Watch has trained 2,362 citizen science volunteers to observe and collect data on coastal and marine human activities. MPA Watch has collected 46,248 surveys and made 1,781,074 observations along 48,888 survey miles. MPA Watch community scientists are crucial to monitoring efforts as they generate quantities of monitoring data that would not be possible under current state budgets. MPA Watch is funded by the Resources Legacy Fund (RLF). 

To read more about this project, please visit:

Project title: Our Forests

Position: Graduate Student Researcher (2022 – 2023)

Our Forests is a $2.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and is a collaborative research initiative between partners from UC Davis, Sierra Streams Institute Sierra Stream Institute (a watershed nonprofit), and the Nevada County Superintendent of Schools. This collaborative aims to empower 3rd to 5th-grade teachers and students in Nevada County, California, to study local forests for fire risk. Beginning in 2019, the project focuses on teacher training, student involvement in environmental research, data analysis, and community engagement and aims to create a replicable model for other educational programs focused on forest monitoring. Our Forests addresses the need to monitor and steward the wildfire-prone landscapes in Northern California and seeks to inspire youth-driven environmental science research.

To read more about this project, please visit:

Experience

Bellwether Postdoctoral Scholar | School of Information | University of California, Berkeley (July 2026 - present)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Summer, 2025)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Spring Quarter, 2025)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Winter Quarter, 2025)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Fall Quarter, 2024)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Spring Quarter, 2024)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Winter Quarter, 2024)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Fall Quarter, 2023)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Summer Quarter, 2023)

Teaching Assistant | Environmental Science Education; Educational Psychology | University of California, Davis (Spring Quarter, 2023)

Teaching Assistant | Introduction to Schools; Elementary Science Education - Pre-Service Teacher Educational Program | University of California, Davis (Winter Quarter, 2023)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Fall Quarter, 2022)

Graduate Student Researcher | Center for Community and Citizen Science | University of California, Davis (Summer Quarter, 2022)

Science Teacher and Researcher | Kīhei Charter School | Hawaiʻi Department of Education (2021 - 2022)

Teacher| Hawaiʻi Department of Education (2017-2022)

Development Coordinator and Garden-based Educator | Grow Some Good | Maui, HI (2017-2020)

Instructor |University of Hawaiʻi Maui College (2018-2019)

Agriculture and Food Security Volunteer | U.S. Peace Corps | Nepal (2016)

 

AWARDS

National Academy of Education Spencer Dissertation Fellowship (2025-2026)

U.C. Davis Global Affairs, Global Grad Social Impact Research Grant (2025)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Research Scholarship (2025)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Conference Scholarship (2025)

U.C. Davis Institute of the Environment, Climate Justice Scholar (2024-2025)

U.C. Davis Global Affairs, Global Grad Research Grant (2024)

North American Congress for Conservation Biology Conference Scholarship (2024)

Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society Award Recipient (2024)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Conference Scholarship (2024)

Public Impact Research Initiative Grant, UC Davis Office of Public Scholarship and Engagement (2024-2025)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Fellowship Award (2024)

U.C. Davis Community and Citizen Science in Conservation Fellowship (2023-2024)

U.C. Davis Public Scholars for the Future Fellowship (2023-2024)

North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) Scholarship (2023)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Research Fellowship Award (2023)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Fellowship Award (2023)

U.C. Davis Graduate Group in Education Fellowship Award (2023)

National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) Graduate Student Committee Scholarship (2023)

University of California Davis, First Year Fellowship Award (2022)

Coverdell Peace Corps Fellowship (2017)

United States Presidential Community Service Award (2014)

University of California Davis, Provost Award (2013)

Francis J. Saunders Scholarship (2012-2013)

American Association of University Women Scholarship (2012)