Emilie Lygren is a poet and outdoor educator whose work is grounded in curiosity and reverence. Emilie’s poems have appeared in dozens of literary journals, magazines, and anthologies. She’s also developed dozens of publications focused on nature journaling, outdoor science education, and social-emotional learning through her work as a curriculum developer at the Lawrence Hall of Science. Emilie’s first book of poetry, What We Were Born For, won the Blue Light Book award and was chosen by Young People’s Poet Laureate Naomi Shihab Nye as a monthly book pick from the Poetry Foundation in 2022. She’s taught writing in a variety of contexts: classrooms, research stations, graduate programs, parks, libraries, and beyond. Emilie holds a BA in Geology-Biology from Brown University and an MFA in creative writing from Maharishi International University. Currently, Emilie is a professor of creative writing, a poet in the schools, and at work on an anthology of poems on mental health for teens and youth. She lives on Coast Miwok land in San Rafael, California. Find more of her work and words at emilielygren.com.