Welcome to my blog. I write about climate change, environmental justice, climate-related migration, biodiversity, and more.
I started this blog when I was a Master’s student in the Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (MsCCAFS) program at the National University of Ireland (NUIG), as part of an assignment.
A little about me…
My name is Darya Silchenko (she/her/hers). I was born and raised in the United States. My parents immigrated from Ukraine to the USA when my mother was pregnant with me. I speak English, Russian and I am actively learning French. I am now living in Brussels, Belgium with my partner.
I am passionate about climate action, sustainable and regenerative agriculture, biodiversity, cultural diversity, equity and inclusion, feminism and transformative, systemic change.
My academic journey…
In 2019, I graduated from Appalachian State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Sustainable Development. Upon graduation, I took a year to travel, work and gain learning experiences outside of the academic world. I had an array of experiences during this time, ranging from outdoor environmental education in Charlotte, N.C. and Freedom, N.H., landscaping/gardening in a historic garden and bird sanctuary, volunteering on a permaculture farm in Northern Thailand and starting my first backyard garden with my mom. After this year, I took a leap and crossed the pond over to Ireland, where I deepened my knowledge and expertise on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security in a one-year Master’s of Science programme at NUIG. I stayed in Ireland after graduation to work on a research project called “Migration, Climate Change and Social Protection“, from which my first paper was published. Today, I am an intern at the Committee Linking Entrepreneurship Agriculture and Development (COLEAD).
I have a deep desire to be a part of an overdue and urgent food system transition that upilifts all people and cherishes the environment we all share our experiences within. I am eager to learn from and collaborate with unique global perspectives and gain field based experience, applicable skills and knowledge that will propel me into a career and lifestyle surrounded by community-driven system change, climate activism and environmental justice via the food system, either through education, small business, small-scale farming, agricultural extension services or research and development work.
I hope to gain a better perspective of where I best fit in the world of resilient agricultural development and transformation and to discover what skills I can develop to be best utilized in making these needed changes.
Please feel free to reach out to me via email (D.Silchenko2@gmail.com) or LinkedIn.
