The Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program at the University of Washington (DDCSP@UW) is a double-cohorted summer immersion program for undergraduates from backgrounds minoritized in conservation. Established with funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation in 2013, DDCSP@UW seeks to recruit and retain a diverse population of conservation scholars to make their life’s work in conservation, while supporting the expansion of conservation itself through integration of their perspectives and empowered engagement.
Each scholar experiences an immersive, experiential field course in their first year, followed by monthly, online professional development calls during the academic year in preparation for their return in the second year to take part in a conservation internship with a governmental, tribal or non-profit conservation organization. The ultimate goal is to help change the conservation workforce to better reflect present-day demographics in the United States by fully incorporating the voices and values resulting from this broader participation. To date, 150 diverse undergraduates from throughout the country have participated in DDCSP@UW. Dr. Tzou has been one of two program evaluators for the program since 2013.