My name is Jesse Neuman-Hammond. I hail originally from the north shore of Massachusetts but have called Portland home since 2020.  I recently graduated from a program in environmental studies and anthropology at Reed College, and having attended and worked at other farm and forest education programs, I am not just passionate about issues regarding sustainability, but finding practical and holistic ways to create a more harmonious and long lasting world for the next generation. I get so much joy working with children and following their curiosity of themselves and the natural environment around them. This has led me to The Treehouse, where I will be a Substitute Teacher across all classrooms.

 

Outdoor education has been a part of my life since high school, when I attended a transformative farm education program. Since then, it has been a goal of mine to help provide similar experiences to young people of all ages. I know how life changing intimate experience with the natural world can be, especially in our modern world where these experiences are either excluded, inconvenient, or not regarded with value. I feel as if I didn’t get the opportunity to connect with nature until relatively late in my childhood, so I am incredibly excited by facilitating these encounters in the formative years of early childhood. Reciprocity with nature, understanding and gratitude for our interdependence with the earth, and a respect for the lives of non-humans are the essential building blocks for holistically developed children and adults, and I am grateful for the opportunity to help children adopt these qualities through the wonderful education at The Treehouse.

 

I have always been a nature lover, and spend most weekends adventuring on my bicycle or hiking around the PNW. I have worked on farms and in farm education programs, and like to keep up my backyard garden in my spare time. Some hobbies of mine include woodworking, mushroom foraging, listening to music, DJing, and collecting records. Most of the time, I just like to bike around southeast Portland and admire people’s unique homes and gardens. One day, I hope to build my own house from scratch.