Sarah Messner

Born and raised in Southern California, Sarah is drawn to rugged mountains and pilgrim roads, especially when accompanied by good friends and a book tucked in her pack. Sarah first traveled to India after college with a Dragons-sponsored group and always knew she would return.

Sarah studied Creative Writing with an emphasis on environmental nonfiction at Dartmouth College. She helped manage the school’s organic farm, studied Spanish language and culture at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, volunteered in Honduras, and received a fellowship to study sustainable agriculture and social justice in rural New England communities. After college, Sarah moved to Rwanda to work with Partners in Health, where she helped to develop an agricultural research center and community program to address systemic malnutrition. She returned to the U.S. after two years to complete a Master of Divinity at Princeton Seminary, where she studied the intersection of religious cosmologies, environmental issues, and health. As part of her masters research, Sarah studied agriculture, religion, and climate change in Ladakh and Dehradun, India. A Kripalu-certified yoga instructor, Sarah loves to practice and play in the mountains. Her love of long trails inspired her to walk across Spain on the Camino de Santiago, traverse the Sierra Nevada mountains on the John Muir Trail, explore the Kanchenjunga range in Sikkim, flee from midges on the West Highland Way in Scotland, and section-hike through Oregon and Washington on the Pacific Crest Trail.

As well as serving as On-Site Director for the Princeton Bridge Year Program in India, Sarah has led multiple Dragons programs in India, Nepal, and Peru, as well as summer courses with National Geographic Student Expeditions and Putney Student Travel, including public health in Rwanda, cultural immersion in Peru, and sustainable development in India.