From left: Terra Baer; Toby Bokum-Fauth, and Juhi Parekh
From policy reform to law to environmental justice, the 2025 cohort of Wyss Scholars are pursuing an array of avenues to protect landscapes across the U.S.
Three Yale students focused on climate change, equity, and land preservation were selected as 2025 Wyss Scholars.
Terra Baer ’26 JD , Toby Bokum-Fauth ’26 MF, and Juhi Parekh ’26 MEM will receive tuition, internships, post-graduate support, and networking opportunities with conservation leaders across the U.S. through the program, which supports upcoming leaders in U.S. land conservation.
“For 125 years, the Yale School of the Environment has been nurturing the next generation of conservation leaders. I am grateful to the Wyss Foundation for their longstanding investment in our students and for their generous support of this year’s three outstanding Wyss Scholars. Drawing on their impressive experiences and the skills they are building at Yale, I know these three scholars will have a tremendous impact on the conservation field for many years to come,’’ said Indy Burke, the Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. Dean of the School of the Environment.
Baer said the roots of her focus on environmental justice and land remediation stem from growing up on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in Albany, which is known for its verdant landscape. In 2012, the Chevron Richmond Refinery fire sent toxic smoke into the air and thousands to the hospital. Witnessing this destruction left a lasting impression on Baer and led her to pursue a bachelor’s degree in environmental and urban studies at the University of Chicago and, more specifically, sparked her interest in pursuing research on the impacts of the extractive energy market regulation and design.
At Yale Law School, Baer is gaining experience in both law and environmental policy, serving as student director of the Yale Environmental Law and Advocacy Clinic and co-president of the Yale Environmental Law Association. She is also a fellow at Yale’s Law, Ethics & Animals Program (LEAP). Baer said she plans to continue to pursue a focus in climate change, environmental justice, and land conservation.
“I’d like to ensure that future generations inherit a world where land is not only protected but actively nurtured and equitably shared through a relational, eco-centric ethic,” she said.
Vermont native Bokum-Fauth has focused his environmental efforts at the nexus of conservation, strategic partnerships, and finance. He has served in leadership at the Student Conservation Association, which provides young people with opportunities in conservation projects in parks, forests, and green spaces. At the nonprofit, he helped design inclusive recruiting programs and long-term partnerships with federal and state agencies.
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Bokum-Fauth would like to leverage his business acumen to develop innovative conservation finance solutions that are long term, scalable, and supportive of working forests. He said he is looking forward to connecting with fellow Wyss Scholars.
“There’s a lot I can learn from the community that will likely inform my decision-making process,” he said. “This will help make sure that I keep other perspectives in mind in terms of how I develop my strategic approach to policy.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in fisheries and wildlife from Michigan State University , Parekh worked as an urban park ranger in New York City and for King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks in Seattle, where she researched the wildlife impacts to refugee and immigrant smallholder farmers.
“My experiences in both New York City and Seattle expanded my view of what conservation can look like. It was powerful to see the ways that people are able to connect with the land,” she said.
She said her experiences have led her to pursue further work that centers equity and justice in the fields of wildlife and land conservation.
