WHO
WE ARE

Daja Elum is an environmental scientist specializing in GIS and remote sensing for mapping, crop health and productivity monitoring, natural resource management, and precision agriculture. Her expertise extends to the literal and non-literal analysis of multispectral and hyperspectral imagery, climatological modeling, and satellite retrieval algorithm development. She earned her bachelor's and master's in environmental science from Tuskegee University, where she focused on natural resource management and geospatial sciences.

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Daja has acquired a wealth of experience in environmental science through various internships and positions, including serving as a GIS specialist with the USDA Wildlife Services, a water quality specialist with the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site, and a park ranger technician with the Cleveland National Forest in Ramona, California. Her graduate research centered on climate change mitigation and food security, where she studied adaptation strategies for corn and soybean yields in Alabama under CO2 emission scenarios and used precision agriculture software to offer solutions to underprivileged farmers in rural Alabama.

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Today, Daja is pursuing a Ph.D. in atmospheric science at Howard University and works as an Imagery Scientist for the Department of Defense. She is also the author of the children's book The World of Imagery. This book introduces youth to the science of remote sensing and how it helps us understand our world. Growing up in Detroit, Michigan, and witnessing the impact of environmental injustice, inspired her to become an environmentalist. Her mission is to mentor the next generation of minority scientists and work towards mitigating environmental racism through scientific research.