Alumna starts her own Central American conservation organization
For Sarah Otterstrom, the road less traveled keeps leading into the rainforests of Central America.
After receiving her doctorate from the UC Davis graduate group in ecology in 2004, Otterstrom chose to pass on a job with any existing nonprofit organization and start one of her own – a group she named Paso Pacífico, dedicated to conserving and connecting tropical forests in Nicaragua.
"Most people who do biology or ecology feel the real intrinsic value to life and biodiversity," she said. "I just feel passionate about the importance of protecting it."
In 2006, the Cal Aggie Alumni Association recognized Otterstrom's ability to fuse her scholarship, passion and vision into a leadership position in international conservation. Her achievements earned her the Emil M. Mrak International Award from, which honors an alumnus distinguished in a career or service outside the United States.
Heading off the beaten track
From the start of her academic career, Otterstrom shunned a traditional path toward her goals.
After finishing high school, Otterstrom chose to enroll at a private university in San Jose, Costa Rica, where her father had recently moved.
Learning to speak and write fluent Spanish gave Otterstrom an inside connection to the people of Central America.
The hands-on trips and field projects of her courses also introduced her to the diverse natural habitats of Costa Rica and the threats they face.
"I came to realize that in conservation, the human aspect is very important, especially in rural communities," she said. "The interaction between humans and their environment is key."
Here, Otterstrom encountered the tropical dry forests she now works to protect. The seasonal vegetation explodes with greenery in the rainy months, but turns deciduous in the dry season, while the surrounding ecosystem behaves like a desert.
As the most endangered terrestrial ecosystem in Central America with only 2 percent original area remaining, tropical dry forest faces threats from agricultural conversion and encroaching urban development.
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Wishing to pursue graduate work in ecology and conservation, Otterstrom set her sights on UC Davis after reading a chapter in her agro-ecology textbook written by UC Davis plant science professor Kevin Rice.
"Even at the time in Costa Rica, one of my professors told me that UC Davis is No. 1 in ecology," she said, referring to a statistic found in U.S. News and World Report's graduate school rankings — Davis is consistently within the top five from year to year.
"The ecology grad group is really outstanding because you get exposed to many aspects of ecology and conservation biology," said Otterstrom, who began her graduate work in 1997.
"So many different professors and grad students are studying the Arctic to the Amazon – you get the whole span."
Largest ecology graduate program
More than 200 graduate students participate in this interdisciplinary program that includes 20 departments, the largest of its kind in the country. (see Ecology Graduate Group Q&A)
For her emphasis in human ecology, Otterstrom took classes in anthropology and sociology in addition to other science classes.She worked with professors Ben Orlove, an anthropologist and cultural ecologist, and Mark Schwartz, a plant ecologist with a strong interest in conservation.
‘Most people who do biology or ecology feel the real intrinsic value to life and biodiversity. I just feel passionate about the importance of protecting it.’
Sarah Otterstrom, Paso Pacífico executive director
Otterstrom's interest in the cultural and forest ecology of fire lead her to Nicaragua for her dissertation work.
"I was looking for a place where I could do burn experiments," she said. "In Nicaragua, people still actively burn, and cultural attitudes to fire are much more accepting."
After finishing her doctorate in 2004, Otterstrom’s passion for conservation led her back to Nicaragua after she opted not to pursue a post doc en route to a traditional faculty track.
Marched to 'own drummer'
"I needed to march to my own drummer," she said. "Mark Schwartz told me, 'Don't be afraid to do something different. It's OK not to be a professor; there are lots of ways to put your Ph. D. to good use.'"
She chose instead to start her own nonprofit organization to serve a need unmet by existing groups – the conservation of Nicaragua's tropical dry forests. In doing so, she became the fourth ecology group graduate since 1999 to take this entrepreneurial route.
She credits UC Davis' globally aware graduate program, with its strong emphasis on applied issues, in helping to cultivate her decision.
"It's common for graduates in ecology to work in the nonprofit sector, but starting your own is very challenging," she said.
Professionals with passion
"The fact that four recent graduates have done so indicates that UC Davis creates professionals that have a lot of passion and are willing to put our skills to the benefit of society."
Otterstrom's "something different" bloomed into Paso Pacífico, based in Ventura, Calif., a group with the mission to connect and conserve the ecosystem of western Central America, with a focus on creating corridors.
Like a life-support network of arteries and veins, habitat corridors allow continuous movement of wildlife and resources between otherwise fragmented pieces of land.
"Wildlife needs habitat to survive over the long term, habitat that is connected and functional," Otterstrom said.
To help make those connections, Paso Pacífico works with landowners to link patches of forest and preserve quality habitat along rivers and Pacific mangrove swamps.
Spider monkey is an emblem
"The spider monkey is an emblem for what we are trying to do," Otterstrom said. "It eats fruits and so needs connected forest canopy of high quality and large areas."
Conservationists see the protection of forests for the spider monkey particularly important because of its role as an “umbrella species,” meaning that efforts to preserve the spider monkey’s habitat also preserves habitat for many other species at the same time.
Beneficiaries include precious hardwoods like Spanish cedar and mahogany, brilliant yellow-naped parrots often captured for the pet trade, and even marine mammals and sea turtles.
"We want corridors to include both the landscape and the seascape," Otterstrom said.
Balancing science with management
ON THE HOME PAGE: Nicaraguan children stand in front a sign that reads in Spanish, "If you cut a tree, plant three." By helping local communities take personal responsibility for preserving their land and wildlife, Otterstrom says Paso Pacífico is ensuring the future protection of the conservation corridors. (Julie Martinez/Paso Pacífico photo)
Today, Otterstrom balances her penchant for science with the demands of management, which include organizing and fundraising. Although fieldwork is her favorite part of the job, she finds two communication skills most valuable: working with people and writing. (see Otterstrom's Q&A for more nonprofit insights).
She travels to Nicaragua about once every three months, and has a hand in everything from deciding which trees to plant, to which topics to cover in community workshops, to writing letters to donors. In addition, she and her husband have a 1-year-old son.
"Working at a nonprofit requires a lot of dedication, you're expected to work long hours," she said. "It's high cost, but high reward – it's very rewarding to do what you're passionate about.
"I think sometimes the world is very discouraging. Especially with climate change, it can be easy to feel like, what can be done? But when you actively work toward making a difference, you actively create hope for the future."