Conservation Futures

Dr. Iara Lacher is an interdisciplinary landscape ecologist, bringing the knowledge and experience that come from degrees in Botany, Environmental Science and Management, and Ecology to work on complex issues of sustainability and resource use. She is established in conservation and planning circles throughout Northern Virginia through her research at the Smithsonian Institute, where she worked to connect her science to policy in order to help achieve sustainability goals. She is skilled in quantitative methods in landscape-scale modeling, focusing on land-use change and climate change impacts on ecological function and biodiversity.

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Passionate about education and outreach, and with her knowledge of native plants, Dr. Lacher established Seven Bends Nursery, where she hopes to empower individuals to make positive environmental changes and inspire environmental conservation through native gardens by providing access to high-quality native plants, on-demand site analysis, and educational talks.