Kara Salazar is IISG’s new sustainable communities extension specialist, located in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. She will design an extension program to empower communities to sustain natural resources. Kara will develop products, programs, and resources that will assist communities in identifying a range of issues that impact their sustainability and in making informed land use and policy decisions. These sustainability issues include recycling, lawn management, green infrastructure, water conservation, natural resource based planning, alternative energy strategies and more.
 
Kara has a M.P.A. in natural resource management and nonprofit management from the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs. She also received a M.S.Ed. degree from the IU School of Education at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) as well as a Certificate in Fundraising Management from IU.  She came to Sea Grant and Purdue Extension from an education outreach position in the Department of Earth Sciences, Center for Earth and Environmental Science at IUPUI.

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A flooded street isn't just a local problem. When roads flood, the ripple effects reshape how an entire city moves, and IISG grad student scholar, Tianle Duan, is building the tools to track it in real time.Using remote sensing, aerial imagery, and AI, this Purdue PhD student maps flood impacts on road networks so first responders and city officials can act faster and smarter.🔗 Learn more about Tianle’s research at the link in bio.
Teaching plastic pollution? There’s more to it than the 3 Rs. @NAAEE’s Plastics eeResearch collection pulls together six studies on how to meaningfully educate students, from preschool through middle school, about plastic pollution.Research-backed, classroom-ready, and free to access.🔗 Link in bio📷 Photo credit: NOAA#TeachingTuesday #PlasticPollution #EnvironmentalEducation
Summer on Lake Michigan is the best, and a little prep makes it even better. 🌊☀️Dangerous currents near piers and breakwalls surprise even strong swimmers. Here's what to know:✅ Swim in designated areas↔️ Caught in a current? Swim to the side — not against it — then to shore🆘 In danger? Call for a life ringSave this post and share it with your swim crew. 👇More Lake Michigan safety resources: link in bio 🔗