Station: Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge in Ridgefield, Washington

Years Served: 2024-present

Hometown: New York City, New York

Pre-Fellowship Education: Bachelor of Science in Urban Planning from Barnard College of Columbia University

Bio: Lily Fittinghoff is stationed at the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge in Washington state, serving as a Public Lands Transportation Fellow. At Ridgefield she supports ongoing efforts to make the refuge and the region more accessible to patrons while maintaining wildlife priorities. During her fellowship she will be working to create consistent messaging regarding accessibility as well as work on national infrastructure vulnerability assessment tools. Before her fellowship, Lily completed her honors thesis on the socio-economic impact of offshore wind on port communities at Barnard College. During this time, she was able to cultivate her research and design skills which she hopes to put into practice at Ridgefield. Writing her thesis cemented her interest in the intersectional impacts transportation has on community resiliency. She is grateful for the opportunity to work with the passionate and driven teams at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and hopes to improve her birding skills while at Ridgefield.