Claire Kurnick is a Circle of Blue summer intern and a recent University of Denver graduate with a bachelor's degree in Global Studies. Her concentration is focused on International Health and Development. Claire has travelled throughout East Africa and the South Pacific focusing on Peace and Conflict studies along with Social and Environmental Development. Claire is a lifelong resident of the Great Lake state of Michigan, and has dedicated her academic focus on sustainable development strategies in protecting natural resources to enhance adequate standards of living for future generations to come. Claire not only has a passion for travel, but also the outdoors.
Alyanna is a graduate student at Binghamton University in New York pursuing a Masters degree in Biomedical Anthropology. Her academic background has centered around public health issues and epidemiology. At Circle of Blue, her reporting focuses primarily on the impact of COVID-19 on water access and hygiene internationally, exploring contemporary social, political, and economic issues relating to water.
Elena Bruess writes on the intersection of environment, health, and human rights for Circle of Blue and covers international conflict and water for Circle of Blue's HotSpots H2O.
Jane is a Communications Associate for Circle of Blue. She writes The Stream and has covered domestic and international water issues for Circle of Blue. She is a recent graduate of Grand Valley State University, where she studied Multimedia Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. During her time at Grand Valley, she was the host of the Community Service Learning Center podcast Be the Change. Currently based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Jane enjoys listening to music, reading and spending time outdoors.
Reports on women's rights, LGBTQ issues, climate change and other under-covered issues and underserved communities in North America for the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Talia Buford covers disparities in environmental impacts for ProPublica.
Previously, she was an environment and labor reporter at The Center for Public Integrity, where her work focused mostly on wage theft and the Environmental Protection Agency's lackluster enforcement of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. She also covered energy for POLITICO Pro, and started her career covering municipal and legal affairs at The Providence (R.I.) Journal. She earned a master’s degree in the study of law from Georgetown University Law Center and a bachelor’s degree in print journalism from Hampton University.
Prof. Braga was elected to his first three-year mandate as President of the World Water Council in November 2012 and was reelected for a second term in November 2015. Before this, from 2006 to 2012, he served as Vice-President of the World Water Council and chaired the International Steering Committee (ISC) of the 6th and 7th editions of the World Water Forum in Marseille (France) and Daegu-Gyeongbuk (Korea). Prof. Braga is the author of 25 books and chapters of books.
Gary Wilson is an independent journalist who focuses on the Great Lakes and related environmental, economic and social issues.
He wrote the Chicago View column for Great Lakes Echo and served as a commentator for Detroit Public Television’s Great Lakes Week coverage. Gary comments for the Great Lakes Month in Review segment on WKAR in Lansing and is an occasional contributor to WMUK in Kalamazoo.
Though Gary covers a wide range of Great Lakes issues, he is best known for his coverage of Great Lakes restoration, the Waukesha water diversion and the Toledo and Flint water crises.
