In Germany, Bavaria, Natalie grew up with the beautiful Alps mountain range in her backyard, and her parents took her hiking and exploring nature from an early age. Having the forest and river close by were her favorite playgrounds, and she says, “I am grateful that my parents taught me at an early age the love for nature and an appreciation that we live on a beautiful planet in an amazingly diverse space that we call home.”
Exploring is in Natalie’s soul. She chose a career that allowed her to travel and see the world—becoming a colorist working for the media industry on three continents in thirteen different countries fulfilled that wish. It allowed her to create TV commercials all over Europe, living and working in Poland, Ukraine, India, Mumbai, Africa, Cape Town, and the Middle East. Once she stepped out of the studio, she had the opportunity to explore the foreign countries’ various environments.
The rapid transformation in the advertising and film industry into the digital space inspired Natalie, by the age of 36, to work with the new marketing medium and support small businesses and non-profits to reach their digital marketing goals. Before moving to Santa Cruz, she worked on campaigns for the SOS Children Village, which provides humanitarian and developmental assistance to children in need and protects their interests and rights worldwide.
In 2017, Natalie moved from Germany to Santa Cruz, where she fell in love with Redwoods of Henry Cowell, Big Sur, and the fantastic diversity of Santa Cruz nature. Today, she is fond of hiking is the Pinnacle National Park southeast of Santa Cruz, home of the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus) one of the most endangered birds in the world. “It is fascinating to me, that we managed, thanks to science and efforts in the 1980ies, to rewrite history and bring this species back to life,” says Natalie.
Joining the museum combines her passion for protecting the environment, education, and support for young people to discover a new perspective. Supporting the museum’s mission to engage more people and inspire them to become stewards of our earth by understanding and enjoying the beauty and wonders of this beautiful place we call home is a calling and a dream come true.