Growing the Team: Katie Siech

HeartLands Conservancy is pleased to announce the addition of Katie Siech to our dynamic team. Katie will serve as HLC’s Environmental Programs Associate, working with team members to accomplish a variety of organizational goals related to the many facets of our environmental and resilient communities initiatives, including watershed planning, education outreach, environmental planning, and more.

Katie fell in love with nature at a young age. As a child, she spent most of her time outdoors and her family went camping along the Meramec River often. It wasn’t until she stumbled upon a flyer at St. Louis Community College, however, that the trajectory of her life changed from aspiring artist to environmental advocate.

“I was walking through the hall one day and I noticed a flyer for the Missouri Master Naturalist Program. I had taken some conservation biology courses already, so the idea of learning more about our local environment piqued my interest.”

She decided to participate in the program, and it ignited her passion for seeing conservation as a human construct.

“It [conservation ecology] isn’t just about science. There is a very human element that comes with ecology. People benefit both mentally and physically by being surrounded in nature and that aspect is something I am very passionate about.”

Seich seining for fish

Through the Missouri Master Naturalist Program Katie was introduced to AmeriCorps, which furthered her interest in serving people. Throughout a variety of roles in her career, she has tied her love of service and nature together, a quality that makes her a perfect fit to work for an organization such as HeartLands Conservancy.

Katie has a Master of Science in Environmental Science from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Maryville University. She serves as a Volunteer Naturalist for the Missouri Department of Conservation and as a Water Quality Monitor for the Stream Team Organization.

In her spare time, Katie loves kayaking and is a self-described “river rat.” She is a mother of two, and thoroughly enjoys her “chaotic” garden that provides native habitat for pollinators throughout the year.

She can be reached at: Katie Siech Environmental Programs Associate katie.siech@heartlandsconservancy.org 618-566-4451 ext 16

In addition, Katie is also an experimental chef. Please enjoy one of her recent adventures below.

I was inspired by a recipe video (Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company https:// pin.it/1ENcbpP) our colleague sent us, Laura Lyon, and decided it was a great experiment to try with my four year old! We cut off our sunflower heads that were mostly done blooming, where the seeds were still white and soft but the flower’s petals were beginning to drop off. We removed all the petals and ‘flower bits’ from the middle, and I saved them for pickling with our veggies. From here, we coated the flower seeds in olive oil and my favorite grilling spices (for this we used garlic, salt and pico fruta - a seasoning blend with chili peppers and lemon peel). We grilled the sunflower seed side down for approximately ten minutes, until the seeds were soft and grill marks appeared. Afterwards, I coated the sunflower in sundried tomatoes and fresh cut basil from our herb garden. It made for the perfect side dish to a summer BBQ, and was loved by all, including the kids! For a fresh way to enjoy sunflowers, I highly recommend them grilled. - Katie Siech