Meet Tory Nau | Natural Resource Management Pathway Lead at Futures Lab, PSD

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tory Nau and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tory, we’d love to hear what makes you happy.
I find happiness in a lot of different places. Being outside in nature is my happy place. My husband and I spend a lot of our free time running trails in the mountains with our dog. We love exploring new trails together. Nature brings me a sense of peace. It also inspires me and makes me feel alive. Every trail is a new adventure. I love watching my dog run, side by side we experience the world together. She is the epitome of joy and happiness with her tail held high, her ears swinging from side to side, her brown eyes shining, and her tongue hanging out with a huge grin on her face. She brings me pure, genuine joy.

My husband makes me so very happy. He reminds me to slow down, laugh, have fun and live in the moment. He is my constant source of love, laughter, support, and joy. I love living every day with him by my side. I look forward to many years of adventures together.

Spending time with my family and friends also makes me happy. My nephews and niece are also sources of joy for me. Their sweet innocent inquiries and laughter fill my heart with warmth and happiness.

My students bring me joy and pride. Teaching students about environmental education makes me happy and gives me hope for the natural world that I love so much. They inspire me. Together, I know we can make a better world.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Similar to the mountain trails I run, my career path has taken several different twists and turns. My background is in wildlife biology but I have also worked in the customer service and retail industries and most recently education. I’ve been very fortunate to travel the world and work on wildlife research projects. I’ve slept in a tent in the Serengeti, felt my sternum vibrate from the song of humpback whales, slashed through the jungle with a machete in Belize, traveled by skiff in Alaska to watch sea otters, and traversed the Mongolian steppe to study pika and Prezwalkski’s horses.

I became a teacher because I realized that I couldn’t save the world on my own. I knew I needed help so I became a teacher to inspire younger generations to appreciate, care for, and take action toward creating a sustainable future.

When I decided to become an educator, I knew I wanted an alternative education career. When I was in high school, I had the opportunity to attend zoo school. This opportunity completely transformed my own understanding and perspective of education. I discovered that learning could be more than just reading examples in a textbook in a room with four walls, it could be solving real-world, meaningful problems outside in a natural environment. I specifically sought teaching roles that gave me the ability to be creative and flexible so that I could create meaningful and experiential learning opportunities for students.

During my student teaching experience, I discovered the power of experiential education from a teacher’s perspective. Witnessing the transformative effects of a week-long immersive living and learning experience in a natural setting was a turning point in my career. Students need to be outside. Everyone needs to go outside.

My first teaching position was at Mountain Sage Community School. I taught environmental education to middle school students. We didn’t have a walled classroom. We were outside for every class, everyday, no matter the weather.

In search of a full-time teaching position, I transitioned to an alternative K-12 hybrid school, Poudre Global Academy. At this school, I taught science to all three middle school grade levels and high school environmental science. I worked very closely with an incredible team of dedicated teachers and discovered the power of educational technology tools and personalized education. The small classes, hybrid learning platform, and personalized attention from teachers helped students who were not successful at traditional schools to thrive. I also discovered a love for curriculum design. I enjoyed every minute of my time and PGA and left only to pursue my passion for wildlife conservation and the opportunity to teach environmental education.

This past year, I have had the opportunity to create a natural resource management pathway at Futures Lab, an alternative program for high school students in Poudre School District that enables students to engage in deep, authentic learning around specific areas of interest. This position has given me the opportunity to teach forestry, wildlife, and environmental science, and to lead the Climate Summit. In my pathway, students receive concurrent enrollment credit through Front Range Community College and to work closely with local partners and community organizations. Every Wednesday, we have the opportunity to go out into the community and learn from experts. We get hands-on experience practicing and developing natural resource skills so students are prepared for the workforce and future academic pursuits.

In addition to teaching natural resources, I have also served as the teacher coordinator for the Climate Leadership Summit, an event for students by students. This event was a collaboration between Poudre School District and the School of Global Environmental Sustainability at Colorado State University. This year marked the fifth annual Climate Summit and we hosted 300 high school students from districts all over Colorado. Students learned about various climate-related topics from leading experts and walked away with actions they can take to contribute to a sustainable future and a healthy planet. This event was a milestone in my career because it was such a meaningful experience that reached so many young people across our state. My student leadership group planned, coordinated, and organized every aspect of this event. They are an incredible group of leaders and have made a profound impact on their community. I am so proud of each of them for their contributions, hard work, dedication, and courage to lead this event. Together, we have created a model that can be shared and used again to continue to educate the youth of our community about climate change and inspire hope for the future.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love living in Fort Collins. If a friend was visiting, I would take them for a drive up the Poudre Canyon, a hike along one of the many amazing trails, perhaps Helwett Gulch, and then a picnic lunch along the river. We would also need to stop for a drink at the Mish and sit on the patio overlooking the river! Depending on the friend’s interests and ideas of a good time, I would love to take them camping, there are so many incredible places to camp near Fort Collins. We would also need to spend an afternoon in Old Town, getting coffee, visiting the fun shops, and having dinner on one of the many great patios. We would also ride bikes to one (or several) of the many craft breweries in Fort Collins. We are fortunate to have many great breweries to pick from and great trails around Fort Collins! I would also love to take a friend to Estes Park and visit Rocky Mountain National Park, an incredibly beautiful place to visit and explore. If we had time, we would also visit Horsetooth Resevoir and go for a paddleboard excursion.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would not be who and where I am today without the loving support of my husband Erik, my parents, siblings, grandparents, and my friends.

In terms of the Climate Leadership Summit, I would like to shoutout my student leadership group. Nine students from different high schools in Poudre School District met twice a week since January to plan, coordinate, and lead all aspects of the Climate Leadership Summit. This was an event for students by students. Without these nine students, this event would not have been possible. Their dedication, leadership, courage, and hard work resulted in a successful event that educated high school students about climate change. I would also like to thank the School of Global Environmental Sustainability at Colorado State University. Their partnership, collaboration, and support made this event possible. I would also like to thank previous student leaders who planned the Summit in past years, their hard work and dedication set the stage and built the foundation for the Climate Summit.

Finally, I would like to thank my colleagues at Futures Lab. This truly is a team of innovation, collaboration, and support. I am grateful to work alongside such incredible educators.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tory-nau