Laura Barghusen, Associate Greenways Director

Prior to joining Openlands in 2004, Laura Barghusen spent three and a half years at the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission (NIPC) working as an environmental analyst and focusing on wetland and stream mapping, modeling, and assessment. She has extensive natural resources and conservation experience, which she utilizes to help create water trails for paddlers and coordinate Openlands’ StreamLeaders course.

Laura has worked seasonally for a variety of national parks and forests, designed science curriculum for home-study high school students, and interned for The Field Museum’s environmental and conservation programs. She is the author of The Bear (Endangered Animals & Habitats).

• B.A., University of Chicago, IL
• M.S., Zoology, Miami University, Oxford, OH
• M.A., Environmental and Urban Geography, University of Illinois at Chicago