About me
RIGHT NOW
I’m Leda, a mother of two, writer, project manager, and suicide widow.
I understand if that last bit feels unsettling. For a long time I avoided examining this part of my life experience. Those two words together — suicide and widow — meant only grief and loneliness to me. I was afraid that would become my whole story if I looked too closely.
Writing has helped me live inside hard truths, especially ones that seem like “either or” but are really “both and.” Like grief leading to both darkness and clarity. Instead of turning away from them, I pay more attention now to what they reveal about healing, growth, and love.
Being a suicide-widowed parent was isolating, forcing me to connect with people in new ways. Stigma and shame about suicide met me at every turn, motivating me to speak openly about it. Already high standards for working moms became unattainable, pushing me to rethink career success. Time became the most valuable resource I had.
Now I prioritize work that is creative, serves others, and contributes to more compassionate, care-centered communities. Work that uplifts.
CAREER
I’ve worked in conservation and strategic planning for twenty-five years. I ran advocacy campaigns in the southeastern US for The Pew Charitable Trusts, served as Executive Director of the Reef Environmental Education Foundation, and co-founded Lighthouse Environment Partners. My portfolio has included science communication, public engagement, and collaboration across government, academia, and mission-driven groups.
In 2022, I started Wild East Strategies, a consulting company created to help organizations manage change and pursue growth by strengthening culture, systems, and teams. I have closed its doors to focus on writing and the work outlined on this site, such as the Suicide Widows Project, but remain committed to the values, principles, and approach at its heart.
My academic training is in biology, anthropology, business and environmental policy. In addition to running organizations and starting new ones, I’ve helped create federal and state plans that protect wildlife and habitat; a citizen science program for US South Atlantic fisheries; endangered species protections in Puerto Rico; and community engagement for conservation in coastal North Carolina. Every project required a tailored What? So What? Now What? approach to building on what worked in the past and leaving behind what didn’t.
An early career highlight was helping start a Congressional Staff Dive Club. Through a public-private partnership, twenty-five House and Senate aides from across the political spectrum completed scuba training and visited the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary to learn about ocean conservation while experiencing it firsthand. Connecting people to their natural curiosity and helping them find new ways of working together became my calling.
My CV is here.
BACKSTORY
I grew up in New England, went to college in Minnesota, lived overseas in Nepal, Venezuela, and Tanzania, then in Washington, DC and the Florida Keys before landing in eastern North Carolina, my home since 2016.
I wanted to be a marine biologist when I was young. At the time, I didn’t realize the world needed science communicators as much as scientists. I’m glad I landed in a public policy job where I learned communication skills for building connective tissue between ideas and action.
I love learning about people: their stories, what motivates them, and how much good they and others can do when pulling in the same direction.
