Sarah Hazlitt

Sarah was born and raised in Hector, a small town in the Finger Lakes region of western New York, and is a 7th-generation member of a fruit farming family. Growing up, she spent most of her time exploring creeks and gorges or the lake, whether it was sailing, skiing or kayaking. Being raised in such a beautiful rural area gave Sarah a deep appreciation for nature. Though she loved where she grew up, the travel bug bit her hard early in life. This probably had something to do with her dad's constant tales from his time as a whitewater rafting guide in Alaska. She joined her father on sailing trips in New England and went on her first international trip to Greece when she was 14. Once she had a taste of global adventure, she knew it would be part of her life forever.

Sarah holds a degree in International Affairs from Northeastern University. During college, she studied abroad in Greece, Ireland and South Africa and worked for the NATO Defense College in Rome. After graduating, Sarah worked for a study-abroad program through Northeastern, guiding students’ travel experiences in Thessaloniki, Greece, and Montreal, Canada. She later returned to the Finger Lakes to work for the Einhorn Center for Community Engagement at Cornell University. She enjoyed helping the university work more closely with local communities and reaped the benefit of taking classes in subjects she was passionate about, such as global development and sustainability. She always wanted to make the leap to sustainable travel and conservation, and when she saw an opening at Nat Hab, she knew it was the perfect opportunity.

Some of Sarah’s favorite adventures are kayaking in Matka Canyon in Macedonia, sunrise climbs up Lion’s Head in Cape Town, swimming with great white sharks off the South African coast, summiting Mount Olympus in Greece, and helping baby sloths learn how to climb at a Costa Rican wildlife sanctuary. In her free time, she enjoys skiing in any form, including downhill, cross-country and water skiing, as well as hiking and ice skating. She also enjoys volunteering her time for a local conservation organization, Seneca Lake Pure Waters Association.

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