[Serena’s Hakai Magazine feature, “A River Runs Above Us”] was written in gorgeous prose, with lively pacing, smart structure, vivid scenes, and intriguing characters. And it beautifully connected the science of atmospheric rivers with the human stories of the people who are grappling with how to handle those weather phenomena.

In just over a year, Serena [went] from an intern learning the ropes of radio to being a consistent and integral part of our team—someone who played a key role in some of our strongest programming. She can be described in many ways: tenacious, helpful, detail oriented, and inclusive in her thinking. She has plenty of hustle, owns her mistakes, and holds herself to a high standard. Though she has a deep interest in writing … I hope we have convinced her that audio storytelling isn’t half bad either.

Not only is Serena a thorough researcher and reporter who can tackle complex topics, she has the ability to fashion engaging stories with compelling scenes, characters, structures, themes, and voice. She is passionate about solutions stories featuring inspiring change makers. And she’s proven herself an award-winning multimedia storyteller with quality photography, video, audio, and immersive writing. Bonus: rarely have I encountered a young journalist with such creative skills who is also so detail oriented. Serena as copy-editor (of her own work or that of others) rarely misses a typo or factual error.