I grew up in Kathmandu — the capital of Nepal, with population density almost twice as high as NYC. My dad instilled in me the importance of education from my early childhood, while my mother inspired me to be self-sufficient. After graduating valedictorian of my high school, I left the concrete jungle in pursuit of an Associate degree in Forestry in Hetauda – a “city” almost 50 miles south of Kathmandu. The 2-year academic journey – which I originally thought of as a city escape, furthered my interest in forestry and natural resources, and I ended up earning an undergraduate degree in Forestry.

My knack for running away from my hometown only got bigger and better when I hopped on the plane for the first time and moved halfway around the world to pursue an MS in Forestry and Natural Resource Science at the University of Kentucky. There, I developed a plethora of soft and hard skills, including my love for Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data and my digital research interest in oaks. I continued my academic pursuit by enrolling in a doctoral program at North Carolina State University, where I majored in Forestry and Environmental Resources with a minor in Economics. Although my research in hardwood economics was a bit of a unicorn in the pine country, I found my niche – thanks to several collaborative opportunities through the Southern Forest Resource Assessment Consortium (SOFAC) and the US Forest Service-Southern Research Station.

After my 9 to 5, I like to hit the gym, read the NYT/books, listen to the music/Apple podcasts, and watch TV shows/movies. On weekends, I enjoy biking, thrifting, baking, and grocery shopping. I describe myself as a work-from-home forester recently trained to think like an economist – or an oakonomist (a moniker, I take great pride in coining 😉).

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