Luísa Black Ellis is a Brazilian-American poet, self-taught ecologist, and third-generation educator listening devotionally to the land and waters in traditional Chesapeake and Nansemond territory. She is the manager of the Elizabeth River Project’s Ryan Resilience Lab, a global model for coastal resilience, where she uses interdisciplinary art, science, and play to spark hope and action on behalf of the river’s future.
She is a certified Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional I and she holds additional certifications in soil fungi consulting and sustainable urban farming. She has seven years of experience in landscape design and environmental project management, and over ten years of experience in adult education and grassroots community organizing.
Luísa has the great privilege of being married to renowned artist JJJJJerome Ellis. They live together on a creek in Norfolk, VA, where they see at least one heron almost every day.