Maria Oachs // Summer 2024 CURE Legal Intern

CURE warmly welcomes Maria Oachs to our staff as a legal intern during the summer of 2024. This fall, Maria will be a third-year law student at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. As a legal intern at CURE, she will continue our work cataloging and analyzing state agency policies and how different agencies make plans to engage with key rural constituencies.

Maria originally hails from rural northwestern Wisconsin, growing up on a hobby farm near Grantsburg, WI. Her love for the environment comes from this rural upbringing. As a teenager, she was steeped in agriculture through 4H and spent time as an avid hunter in the surrounding woods and marshes. These experiences cultivated an appreciation for nature and the environment, clearly illustrating that humans are just one species that coexists within a much larger ecosystem. Maria holds a degree in Equine Science and Management (B.S.) with minors in Political Science and Agricultural Economics from the University of Kentucky.

Maria was drawn to CURE by its dedication to advocating for the environment and rural people, a cause she deeply resonates with due to her rural background. Her firsthand experiences have underscored the crucial role of rural communities in protecting and preserving the ecosystems we all depend on. Post-law school, Maria aspires to use environmental law to advocate for nature and the people and communities whose well-being is threatened by the climate and biodiversity crises.

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Kelsey Olson

Kelsey Olson

Director of Environmental Stewardship

Kelsey Olson (she/her) joined CURE in 2025 as its Director of Environmental Stewardship. As a skilled environmental naturalist, Kelsey’s work focuses broadly on environmental education and advocacy with a keen focus on rural land use and how that use impacts our environment and climate. Working Lands, how land is used to support agriculture and forestry, is a key focus of her work. She brings 15 years’ experience in public communication, environmental education, and rural community engagement – strong communication strategies are core in her work. This includes two terms of service with AmeriCorps in the VISTA program in Oregon and Maryland and a nearly 10-year career as a naturalist followed. She recently worked on communications and marketing for rural economic development.

Kelsey lives in New London, MN, with her young children, husband, dog, and two cats. They enjoy spending time together outside and finding small treasures in nature. Visits to Minneapolis often include visits to one of their favorite historical museums, the Minnesota Swedish Institute. Kelsey enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, whether this is canning local produce, making kombucha, or other treats!