About Me

Alaina Wood is a sustainability scientist and climate communicator based in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Alaina received her bachelor’s degree in sustainability and geography from the University of Tennessee. Her work as a scientist focuses on helping rural areas manage their waste and stormwater, and she consults with local governments and developers to ensure their projects are sustainable. Prior to becoming a climate communicator Alaina worked for a private landfill company, a state government agency, a university recycling office, and a civil engineering firm.

In 2020 Alaina founded the Garbage Queen, a climate communication platform dedicated to climate science and solutions, and co-founded EcoTok, a collective of environmental educators. Her work as a climate communicator focuses on helping people manage their climate anxiety by discussing climate science and solutions and debunking climate nihilism and misinformation on social media.

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So why The Garbage Queen? Alaina's nickname at work for years was "The Trash Queen" due to her intricate knowledge and passion for solid waste management. Sadly @thetrashqueen was taken when Alaina decided to start her social media pages, so she went with @thegarbagequeen instead!