Jessie Robinson

Dual B.A. in Political Science and International Studies (Latin America concentration, departmental honors), Northwestern University

Permaculture Design Certificate, Universidad Internacional de Permacultura

Jessie is a west coaster with a midwestern heart who now calls Bolivia home.  After growing up in a rural area outside Seattle, she moved to Chicago and studied political science and international studies at Northwestern University.  During that time, she had the opportunity to learn in the Navajo Nation, Russia, Bolivia, Peru, Guatemala, Ecuador, and Colombia.  She spent a semester in Bolivia on an immersive program on multiculturalism and social change, during which she conducted independent research on Andean feminism.

After graduating from college, Jessie worked in Chicago for several years, supporting low-income community college students, developing a free bilingual adult education program, and organizing volunteers for youth programs.  She also became active in grassroots organizing communities in Chicago.

In 2012, Jessie moved to Bolivia to write reports on human rights issues and analysis of Bolivian politics and news. She briefed policymakers from the Bolivian and US governments and facilitated visits from human rights monitors.  In 2013, she also became involved in creating and coordinating a multi-country climate justice study abroad program.  She has been teaching and leading college students through Vietnam, Morocco, and Bolivia since 2015.

Jessie’s experiences have showed her the importance of recovering and revaluing traditional and ancestral knowledge and rethinking our food, water, and energy systems to address the urgent climate crisis in an equitable way to create a more just and safe society for all people.  Jessie believes that education with a social justice focus is the key to building a better world.