Charles is currently pursuing his MPS in Agriculture and Life Sciences with a specialization in International Agriculture and Rural Development at Cornell University. His academic interests comprise developing agricultural systems that simultaneously increase food production, restore ecosystem resilience and biodiversity, and improve economic opportunities for small farmers internationally.
Charles is also proud to have served as a Sustainable Agriculture Systems Volunteer in the United States Peace Corps, completing his service in the Comarca Embera-Wounaan within the Darien Province of Panama. His primary mission was to sustainably augment coffee and cacao production among Emberá cultivators, with secondary public health projects concentrating in HIV education. Having been deeply impacted by his experience with the Emberá, Charles is dedicated to exploring how socially conscious enterprise can contribute to addressing the intractable economic, environmental, and socio-cultural problems facing similar isolated indigenous populations throughout the Americas.