Asa Skinner

Asa earned a B.S. in Organismal Biology in 2016 before serving as a rural aquaculture extension volunteer with the Peace Corps in Zambia. There, he partnered with subsistence farmers from the Lunda tribe on aquaculture, permaculture, and agroforestry projects, gaining firsthand experience in community-driven approaches to food security and natural resource management. After returning to the United States, Asa joined the Tillamook Estuaries Partnership, a grassroots nonprofit dedicated to habitat restoration and monitoring on Oregon's North Coast. Within a few years, he advanced to manage a plant materials program consisting of a partnership of more than 25 organizations and the largest native plant nursery on the Oregon Coast. The nursery serves as both a native plant producer and a workforce development program for incarcerated youth. Through ecosystem education and stewardship, these youth gain confidence and horticultural skills while accruing significant savings for their release.

 

Asa has authored native plant propagation protocols, presented at national conferences, and is an experienced grant writer. Outside of work, he enjoys hunting, angling, gardening, and foraging as ways to deepen his understanding of food systems and ecological relationships. As a Master of Professional Studies (MPS) student in Global Development, he plans to integrate plant science, community partnerships, and sustainable agriculture to improve food security and livelihoods while reducing environmental degradation, particularly in Africa