Program Leaders

As an interdisciplinary program, students interact with faculty from a variety of departments and colleges within the University of Massachusetts Amherst. And our dedicated staff help students navigate the program to achieve their goals. Here’s just a few of our key people.
 

Leaders

Britt Crow-Miller

Graduate Program Director, MS in Sustainability Science
Senior Lecturer, Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Geosciences

Dr. Britt Crow-Miller is a Senior Lecturer in the Departments of Environmental Conservation and Geosciences at UMass Amherst. Her academic research is focused on environmental politics, sustainability, global development, and water resource management in China and cities of the Western U.S. In 2018, Britt founded CityWild, a nonprofit organization with the mission of inspiring curiosity about nature through fun, exploration, and hands-on learning for kids and families, including those in underserved communities. The foundation of CityWild was laid in Portland, Oregon, and the organization relocated with Britt to New England in 2020. She received her Ph.D. in Geography from UCLA and holds an M.A. from Harvard University and a B.A. from Bard College.
 

Eric Thomas

(On Parental Leave for Fall 2023)
Assistant Graduate Program Director, MS in Sustainability Science
Lecturer, Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Geosciences

Dr. Eric Thomas is a Lecturer in the Departments of Environmental Conservation and Geosciences.  Dr. Thomas is an environmental anthropologist whose research applies a critical development perspective to contemporary state and capitalist projects along remote resource frontiers.  For the past five years, he has conducted ethnographic fieldwork on the coast of Chilean Patagonia, where a series of harmful algal blooms have resulted in the closure of fisheries and mass mortality events at local salmon farms.  Conducted in the wake of these disasters, his work examines the relationship between industrial aquaculture and artisanal fishing in remote coastal communities as well as the long-term sustainability of these and other sectors of the coastal economy.  His research methods include participant observation, career history surveys, participatory mapping, and semi-structured interviews.  He is originally from mid-coast Maine and received his Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.


Ezra Markowitz

Advisor, MS in Sustainability Science
Associate Professor, Department of Environmental Conservation 
 

Ezra Markowitz is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Conservation, and will be advising some MS3 students for the fall 2023 semester. Ezra is an interdisciplinary environmental social scientist and publicly engaged scholar interested in leveraging our understanding of human behavior to promote environmental sustainability and social well-being. In fall 2023, he will be teaching ECO 631 Public Engagement and Communication.

 

Toni Cunningham

Program Administrator, MS in Sustainability Science 
 
Toni Cunningham has supported the MS3 program as the Administrative Assistant since 2017. Her work for the program includes handling prospective applicant queries, managing program communications, student documentation management, admissions logistics, website content management, and event planning. Toni is originally from Ireland and lived in Portland, Oregon for 8 years where she worked as System Administrator for a freight company before moving to the Pioneer Valley in 2012. She lives in Amherst with her husband, two daughters, and two cats.  
 
 
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