Taelyn Baiza – 2024 Civic Engagement Scholarship Recipient

Taelyn leverages her art to campaign for environmental conservation, sustainability, and biodiversity. Her colored pencil and wood drawings feature animal and plant life inspired by Idaho and regional ecosystems in need of protection. Her artwork can be found in public spaces such as the City of Boise Traffic Box Art program as well as online and in promotional materials used by galleries and non-profits with an environmental focus. Her piece “Endangered West” was featured in the Fifth National Climate Assessment released by the U.S. Global Change Research Program in 2023, as well as commissioned by the environmental law firm Advocates for the West. Taelyn gets hands-on when working on Boise River clean-ups and planting trees. She is an active member of the Boise High Green Team initiating sustainable practices within the school and has taught art classes at the Warm Springs Care Farm, a local nonprofit dedicated to connecting children with nature through art, music, and animal therapy.

Taelyn will be graduating from Boise High School in 2024.