By Shannon Dale
From majoring in music and computer science to transitioning to environmental studies, alumnus and FernLeaf Interactive founder Jeff Hicks ‘08 would say that his experience was a “classic UNC Asheville story.” After exploring multiple majors, he found his passion at the intersection of computer science and environmental studies, interning first with the USDA Forest Service before joining the NEMAC team. He has since turned that passion into a career that helps communities prepare for and respond to a changing world.
Hicks continued to work for NEMAC after graduation, researching ways to make climate change data actionable for improving local and regional decision making.
FernLeaf Interactive was born out of this intersection between research and practice, building on the NEMAC-developed national standard climate risk assessment framework to provide localized products and consulting support for communities most at risk from climate change. Through their public-private partnership, NEMAC continues to perform applied research on decision support in a changing climate, while FernLeaf operationalizes this research in resilience planning projects in communities such as the greater Asheville area, Charleston, South Carolina, and South Florida.
Beyond working with these groups to prioritize infrastructure, land use planning, and other risk-informed interventions in regions prone to flooding, wildfire, landslides, and extreme heat, FernLeaf also focuses on supporting local governments to strengthen the resilience of those living in these communities.
“While we aren’t an advocacy group, we do have a professional responsibility to help our clients become more resilient,” shares Hicks. “A socially-vulnerable and inequitable community is not a resilient community.”
Inspired by their passion for building resilience, FernLeaf provided vital funding to the Food Equity Initiative at UNC Asheville, which provides free, healthy foods to students facing food insecurity.
“As we think about how to make our students and our communities more resilient, if they have their core needs, like food and shelter, met, they are more resilient overall,” says Hicks.
Support the Food Equity Initiative at UNC Asheville by visiting unca.edu/FEI.
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