Hannah joined the Regional Commission in June 2022 as the Regional Cartographer and Geospatial Analyst. Her role is to support the Commission’s diverse projects via geospatial data collection, analysis, and visualization. Hannah cares deeply about socially and ecologically sustainable development. Prior to joining the Commission, Hannah was a GIS technician and instructor in the Department of Geography and Earth Science at UNC Charlotte, where she is also completing her PhD in geography and writing her dissertation on green burial co-creative placemaking in the United States. She believes geography is a beautiful blend of science, creativity, and community.
Hannah received her BS in biology from Meredith College in 2014 and her MS in ecology from UNC Chapel Hill in 2017. She is a Carolina Tar Heel at heart, but is quickly falling in love with Virginia and the New River Valley Region.
Hannah can be contacted at hpalko@nrvrc.org.