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April Baptiste

April Baptiste

Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies
Environmental Studies , 229 Ho Science Center
p 315 2286740
April Baptiste's website

Personal website: http://aprilbaptiste.com

My tenure at Colgate University began in 2009, in the Environmental Studies Program. I am the first tenure-track professor exclusively in the Environmental Studies Program and look forward to the opportunities and challenges that are ahead of me as I make Colgate my new home. I teach courses related to Environmental Justice which is one of my areas of expertise. Having an interdisciplinary background provides unique opportunities within the Environmental Studies Program at Colgate and I look forward to engaging students and colleagues, particularly with the recent approval of the new Environmental Studies major.

As a native of Trinidad and Tobago, I am engaged in research that looks at the intersection of environmental psychological variables and environmental justice issues within the Caribbean region. I have explored the relationship between environmental attitudes and concerns toward oil and gas drilling in an internationally protected wetland in Trinidad and I am currently examining the relationship between environmental justice and the siting of aluminum smelters within the same context.

In addition to my scholarship, I am also involved in "Scholarship in Action" where I use my research skills and knowledge to engage my local community both within the US and Trinidad. I recently completed a project on Green Infrastructure potential in the city of Syracuse with the Partnership for Onondaga Creek (local environmental justice activist group). This project examined the perceptions and support for Green Infrastructure as an alternative to gray sewage infrastructure. Additionally, I am working with two NGOs in Trinidad on an E-waste management project where we are developing a management system - the first of its kind- to handle and dispose of e-waste in an environmentally sound manner.

Degree

 BS, M.Sc. University of West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad 2002, 2004; PhD State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry 2008; Certificate of Latin American Studies, Maxwell School, Syracuse University 2008

Teaching Experience

 Postdoctoral Fellow, Syracuse University January 2008-December 2008; Trinity College, Moka, Maraval, Trinidad September 2002-December 2003

Specialities

 Environmental justice, environmental psychology, natural resource management

Interests

 Environmental justice, environmental psychology, Caribbean environmental issues, climate change

Publications
Baptiste, A.K. & Nordenstam, B.J. (2009). Impact of oil and gas drilling in Trinidad: Factors influencing environmental attitudes and behaviours within three rural wetland communities. Environmental Conservation, 36 (1): 14-21.
 
Baptiste, A.K. & Nordenstam, B.J. (2010). Environmental Perceptions and Action: Villagers Response to Oil and Gas Drilling in the Wetlands of Rural Trinidad. Research in Social Problems and Public Policy. 18: 198-236

Dissertation

 Baptiste, A.K. (2008). Evaluating Environmental Awareness: A Case Study of the Nariva Swamp, Trinidad. State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. 

Professional Experience

 Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow: African American Studies Department, Syracuse University
Refuge Intern: The Wilderness Society, Washington DC 

Distinctions

 Fulbright Scholar (2006-2008)
Technology, Entertainment and Design Fellow (2009) and Senior Fellow (2010-2013)

Other

Personal Website:

http://aprilbaptiste.com

Board Membership

 Founder/Chairwoman: Youth Environmental and Development Coalition (YEDCo), Siparia, Trinidad and Tobago
Director of Environment: The Community HUB, Barataria, Trinidad and Tobago