Hi Everyone, My name is Arielle and I'm so excited for this course! I'm a wildlife conservationist but currently build online education programs for students and teachers for an international private school. My conservation work began in college while interning for the Wildlife Medical Center at my university's school of veterinary medicine. I originally went to university to become a large animal veterinarian, to fulfill my childhood dream of working with horses. However, after working with wild animals for three years, I decided to dedicate my life to species conservation and education. Upon graduation, I headed south to work for one of America's largest wildlife rescues and sanctuaries. I started as an Apprentice and worked my way up from there to an Animal Caretaker, and then to the Apprentice Program Supervisor and Training Specialist. I loved my job and my alarm clock was the roaring of a lion and lioness at dawn. I found the education aspect of the job to be the most rewarding. It was exciting to see my apprentices get inspired by what they learned and to see wildlife conservation efforts migrate into different parts of the world once my apprentices graduated from their programs. I have undergone many transitions in my career since then to accommodate all things life. Working as a teacher in schools and online has filled my education "cup", so to speak. But now, I have the opportunity to return to my career in wildlife conservation. I am whole-heartedly ready to start making a global impact one project at a time. I hope to not only gain the tools, resources, and certifications I need to effectively lead teams in wildlife conservation, but also to become a part of this amazing community. I look forward to meeting and working with all of you. This is going to be great! Arielle