Elena is a graduate from a bachelor’s in Literature and Linguistics (English/German) and a master’s in Business Communications at the KU Leuven University in Belgium. Growing up in Belgium, Elena’s mother taught her the importance of living sustainably and in harmony with our environment. She quickly realized our home needs to be protected from the harm human beings inflict upon it. Living in Hawaiʻi now, this reality becomes so much more clear. She has been living here for almost four years now, and the connection people in Hawaiʻi feel with the land is one to be admired. She tries to embrace that connection herself as often as possible, whether it’s by hiking to see the native plants high up in the mountains, visiting a waterfall, volunteering in a native Hawaiian plant garden, or participating in a beach cleanup. Elena’s previous work experience includes multiple legislative sessions at the Hawaiʻi State Legislature, the Hawaiʻi State Energy Office, and the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. Now, she is excited to be working as an Americorps VISTA for Hawaiʻi Green Growth and contributing to making positive changes for the Hawaiian Islands.