Allison Anderson is a Research Specialist assisting with the Tennessee Wild Forest Seed Network. She is responsible for locating records of selected tree and shrub species occurrence in different databases, e.g., iNaturalist, and developing a location list to guide on-the-ground surveys. Once located, the geographic coordinates of the tree/shrub will be noted for future seed collections. Some species will be propagated to form seed orchards for supplying seeds to the East Tennessee State Nursery.

Allison received her undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in Forest Resources Management, working occasionally for the UT Tree Improvement Program and as a seasonal forestry technician for the USDA Forest Service. Following graduation, she spent a season working for the USDA Forest Service in Alaska. Allison returned to UTK to work on her master’s degree in Informal Science Education. Her M.S. work involved developing a natural resources curriculum to be used in the classroom and on national forests. She returned to the USDA Forest Service as a recreation program manager and then became a special uses permit administration after completing her M. S. degree. After a pause in her career, Allison returned to the UT Tree Improvement Program in her current role.