Megan Damico

Megan Damicowas previously a Policy Entrepreneurship Fellow with the Federation of American Scientists. She is a PhD candidate of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) where she uses the honey bee as a model system to study microbial ecology and evolution of host-associated gut microbiomes. Megan holds a B.S. in Biomedical Sciences from Grand Valley State University (GVSU) in Allendale, Michigan where she also began training to become a beekeeper and was the president of the GVSU Beekeeping Club for two years. As a graduate student at UNCG, Megan has devoted her time to studying the intricacies of the honey bee gut microbiome and developing STEM student workforce development groups focused on science policy and advocacy. In 2021, she was elected as the Southern Hub Chair of the National Science Policy Network (NSPN), where she helps NSPN members navigate professional development and career opportunities in the science policy and advocacy space. Outside of her research, Megan volunteers with the North Carolina Audubon Society in leading state-wide advocacy efforts and is an avid birder.