Thirteen years after graduation, the moment Brian Watts remembers most from his time at Odum is a small show of kindness.

“I think I was going to get a C in a class or something,” Watts said. “[Retired Odum professor] Jim Richardson and Misha [Boyd] sat down with me on a couch. I’m probably crying, as a freshman, and they say, ‘It’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”

Those words really helped to put things in perspective for Watts in his early college years.

“From people who know things in a field you want to be in, it’s really good to hear people level with you… that is what our school is all about.”

Watts still visits the Odum School periodically, whether to catch up with Boyd, who he called “one of the greatest humans alive,” or to meet with other members of the Alumni Board he serves on.

“It’s so easy to go back,” Watts said.

The policy space

Following his graduation from Odum, Watts taught English for two years in South Korea on a Fulbright scholarship, a decision encouraged by Boyd, before attending grad school at Indiana University Bloomington. After earning his master’s in environmental policy and natural resource management, Watts landed at accounting firm Grant Thornton, where he analyzed immigration, trade and travel data.

The job was where he wanted to be in terms of work—analyzing numbers and data, crunching it all together into something workable to help influence policy. But, as the issue of immigration became increasingly volatile, he began considering other options.

“I loved the work, but I don’t think I necessarily wanted to be in that field.”

After four years, Watts decided to make the change back to environmental science.

“Over time,” Watts said, “you start to realize that a lot of environmental research doesn’t go anywhere, or doesn’t seem to get enacted upon. So, I wanted to move into that policy space. Somewhere you can take good information and use it to do good things.”

The intersection of policy and research led him to The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Pew is an international non-profit NGO that improves public policy in communities, conservation, finance and economy, governing and health. Watts is an officer of data and research focused on advancing environmental policy, meaning he gets the best of both worlds: working with numbers and data, as well as working toward a more sustainable future.

Watts started at Pew on the Flood-Prepared Communities team, helping governments become more resistant to the growing threat of flooding. Flooding is an extremely costly and common weather-related disaster, and vulnerable communities don’t always have the resources to respond in a way that mitigates future flood events.

Through funding research on nature-based solutions, and championing policy that enforces higher building standards, Pew works to support flood-prone communities.

Watts is still with Pew on their Energy Modernization team, which works to advance the nation’s transition to electric vehicles, build clean power grids, and further develop offshore wind and other renewable energy solutions.

Most recently, Watts worked with the Louisiana State Legislature to help introduce and pass a resolution that evaluates their readiness to expand offshore wind supply chain resources, the first step in modernizing energy production in a state that is and has been a leader in the energy field.

After months of logistics, study, stakeholder meetings and reviews of the report, Watts and his colleague presented his work at a conference in New Orleans to positive reception.

“I’m now back working for the environment, and I couldn’t be happier,” Watts said.

A strong foundation

Watts credits his success to the skills he honed as a student at Odum. The rigorous coursework: biochemistry, organic chemistry, statistics, evolutionary ecology. Classes that push students not just to regurgitate information, but to play an active role in learning and implementing knowledge.

Watts found the research opportunities available to undergraduates particularly valuable, taking every opportunity he could during his time at the school. He conducted research through CURO, and traveled to Barro Colorado Island to assist in behavioral ecology research through the National Science Foundation’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates program.

He also learned the value of good data: when and how to use it, when to question it, and how to interpret it. Odum, for Watts, established the foundations of science and his career.

‘It was tough, but I think it really paid off,” Watts said.

The people, too, made all the difference during his time in school.

“I think the biggest strength the school has is who’s involved in it. Whether that be friends you make, or the faculty you interact with, or Misha. She’s perfect. That all elevates what you’re doing.”

It’s all connected

Watts serves on the Odum School’s Alumni Board of Members, inaugurated in 2023, which aims to augment facets of the educational experience like student diversity and curriculum to make it more accessible and enjoyable.

As a member of the alumni board’s Student Programs Committee, Watts listens to the students’ wants and needs, as well as their suggestions for improvements.

“I want to give back to the school that was instrumental in where I am today,” Watts said. “But, there were things missing when I was there. It’s only been less than a year, and there’s a lot to do when you’re working full time, but it’s very much worth it.”

Watts’ graduating class was 11 strong, and 13 years later their careers are as diverse as the ecosystems they once studied together. They’re teachers, architects and physical therapists and yes, research scientists, but all can trace their roots back to ecology.

Watts plans to continue working in environmental policy, traveling, adventuring outdoors, and helping to give today’s students experiences like the ones that defined him.

Ecology itself is the study of connections, and the imperceptible ripples that move throughout networks of connections. So it’s no surprise that, when Watts looks back on his career, that’s what he sees.

“The more you live, go through a career or work on policy or research, the more you realize it’s all connected,” he said.