Ariana

Ariana is a third-year undergraduate at Duke University majoring in Biology with a concentration in Neurobiology and minor in Global Health. Ariana is a first-generation American who grew up in Arizona, but more recently calls Durham, North Carolina home. Ariana is a Duke Cardea Fellow, Neurophyte Scholar at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the founder of Project Green Thumb. Through Project Green Thumb, she works to advocate for the advancement of equity in food systems. Her social media platform focuses on sharing the experiences of farmers, as well as other community stakeholders affected by the intersection of climate change and food insecurity. She has also extended her activism to youth voices during her previous terms as a UNICEF USA Youth Representative for the Southeast. Ariana first began working with UNICEF USA when she founded her club in high school in hopes of bridging the learning gap children in underserved communities face; she continues to lead this local initiative in collaboration with Durham Public Schools through Duke’s UNICEF Club. Outside of advocacy work, studying, or research, Ariana can be found trying new restaurants and journaling in her free time.