Chelsea is a geologist and freelance cartographer who is passionate about our dynamic earth and communicating science to the public. She was raised in an eclectic log cabin at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains in central Virginia and spent her youth exploring those woods. She earned her B.S. in Geology from Virginia Tech before heading out west. Her interest in all forms of landscape evolution deepened while studying and traveling to volcanically active locations like New Zealand, Iceland, and Costa Rica. She earned her M.S. in Geology from the University of Montana while creating a geologic map for the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, and worked for several state and federal agencies including the Oregon Department of Transportation, the Virginia Division of Geology and Mineral Resources, and Yellowstone National Park. In 2009, she took her expertise in the field to Mountain Press Publishing Company where she began making maps for publications, namely the “Roadside Geology” guidebook series. She now owns her own custom cartography business (cmcfeeney.com) and has made maps and figures for over 65 publications. Chelsea’s work experience as a geologist, cartographer, Americorps Volunteer, trail crew leader, and environmental educator offers a broad perspective to her instruction.

Chelsea initially taught for WRFI in 2010-2012 where she instructed on Colorado Plateau, Montana Afoot and Afloat, and Restoration Ecology in Greater Yellowstone and she is delighted to return to WRFI adding Conservation Across Borders to the mix. Chelsea now calls Moscow, Idaho home where she lives with her husband, a fellow geologist, and two awesome kids. When not making maps, she can be found performing with her band or taking her kids on micro-adventures around the greater Palouse region.