Kelly Dunn is a sophomore studying Earth Systems and Geological Sciences at Stanford and an alumna of the Steinbeck Youth Institute. Raised in Santa Monica, she spent her days sunrise hiking, swimming in the ocean, and experimenting with new vegan recipes (amidst, y’know, school). Although she knows she always has more to learn, she loves teaching others—particularly when it aligns with helping others garner a stronger sense of self or appreciation of the natural world. Currently, much of her pursuits are driven towards environmental education and curriculum development. While she isn’t teaching, she also tries to experience as much as she can—hence her time spent performing underwater archaeology, working at an educational farm, and in the coming summer, backpacking to the base camp of Mount Everest. Kelly is so excited to return to SYI this spring and looks forward to paying back even a fraction of what the Institute has given her.

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