Dr. Simone Pulver
Environmental Studies Associate Professor & Dept Chair and CUEL Faculty Director
Faculty Director, Greti U. Croft Center for Undergraduate Environmental Leadership (CUEL)
ELI is the brainchild of Dr. Simone Pulver. Dr. Pulver’s proposal for ELI and commitment to sustainability won her UCSB’s 2019 Faculty Sustainability Champion. She is also the recipient of the 2019 Distinguished Teaching Award from the Academic Senate due to her excellence in teaching and service.
Dr. Pulver arrived at UCSB as an Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies in 2009. Prior to her arrival at UCSB, she was a research professor at Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies and the Center for Environmental Studies. She received her doctorate in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley and also hold an M.A. in Energy and Resources from UC Berkeley, as well as a BA in Physics from Princeton University.
Her research focuses broadly on the intersection of economic action and environmental harm and seeks to integrate theoretical frameworks related to global governance, organizational theory, and economic and environmental sociology. Specifically, she has led NSF-funded research projects investigating oil industry responses to climate change, climate politics in Mexico, low carbon investments by firms in Brazil and India, and toxic pollution in US manufacturing.
Dr. Erika Zollett
Executive Director, Greti U. Croft Center for Undergraduate Environmental Leadership (CUEL)
Dr. Erika Zollett has served as Executive Director of the Greti U. Croft Center for Undergraduate Environmental Leadership (CUEL) since 2023. Since joining UCSB in 2019, she has led the Environmental Leadership Incubator (ELI), now housed within CUEL, and develops programs and instruction that help undergraduates transition from the classroom to environmental careers.
Prior to UCSB, Dr. Zollett spent more than a decade in environmental consulting. As a Senior Marine Scientist at MRAG Americas, she worked with diverse stakeholder groups to apply science-based, innovative solutions to complex fisheries management challenges. Her expertise includes protected-species bycatch and marine mammal conservation.
Dr. Zollett has also been involved involved in a number of local initiatives and non-profits including leading a NOAA-funded Ocean Guardian program and a Sustainability Committee at a local elementary school, fundraising for the Santa Barbara Sea Shell Association, and providing advisory support for Sea League in Santa Barbara.
Dr. Zollett earned a B.S. from Bates College, a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University, and a Ph.D. in Natural Resources, with a Cognate in College Teaching, from the University of New Hampshire.