In 2007 a chance conversation between Maggie Kaplan, Executive Director of Invoking the Pause (ITP) and Lisa Micheli Ph. D., Executive Director of Pepperwood Preserve, was the genesis of  Invoking the Pause  and its pilot program, "At the Water's Edge," was a benchmark moment in Micheli's career.

"At the Water's Edge" paired Switzer Fellow, scientist-entrepreneurs Micheli and Healy Hamilton, Ph. D., and Chief Scientist at NatureServe. The scientists took a 'pause' to develop a model that shows the potential impacts of climate change on biodiversity and sea-level rise in Northern California.  Their work formed the vision of what is now Pepperwood Preserve.

2010 brought another Switzer Fellow, ecologist Nicole Heller, to ITP with her project "The Village Greener".  A project that began as a marriage of scientific research with the daily lives, imaginations and memories of the Lancaster, PA community and ultimately resulted in ArtBike!.  Heller subsequently received further ITP grants on behalf of Duke University for her work with the Nicholas School of the Environment.

Today Heller and Micheli are collaborating together in Sonoma County at Pepperwood Preserve as the Terrestrial Biodiversity Climate Change Collaborative (TBC3).  ITP is privileged to have such passionate and bright female minds as 'pause' alums. READ MORE