Emily was raised in suburbs of upstate New York where she completed a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology and psychology. After a few years of teaching outdoor education, she completed a masters degree in disease ecology at Michigan State University and a PhD in disease ecology and epidemiology at the University of South Australia. Now, as lecturer at the University of Tasmania, Emily studies how urban environments can be detrimental to health and how (microbially) biodiverse urban green spaces can benefit health. Emily is co-founder of two not-for-profit science communication organisations, and co-leads the Healthy Landscapes Research Group at UTAS.