‘Nature Boy’ Luke Forsberg to graduate from Quinney College of Natural Resources
At Utah State University, where mountain trails start just minutes from campus and the air is filled with the energy of students rushing between classes, Quinney College of Natural Resources graduate Luke Forsberg said he found the perfect environment for his academic goals and his love for the outdoors.
Growing up in the Salt Lake Valley, Forsberg said he was the kind of kid who never sat still for long. Family vacations weren’t about fancy hotels — they were about camping under the stars, counting wildlife from the backseat of the car and trekking through national parks with a backpack and a camera. It was only fitting when choosing a college, he ended up in a place where his passion for animals and wild spaces would become his everyday life.
Forsberg started college with veterinary school in mind, but it didn’t take long for him to chart his own course. Before his first year even began, a tour of USU’s Logan campus changed his trajectory.
He discovered the natural resources program, a field that “kind of seemed like the best way to merge my interests,” Forsberg said. “I love animals, but I also love being outside.”
The switch set Forsberg on a path he said felt right from the start.
Forsberg’s dad Derek Forsberg said it was obvious from the start where his son was headed.
“He was obsessed with animals from the time he was little, from carrying around plastic animals to counting the number of each kind of wildlife we saw when we were outside on vacation,” Derek wrote in an email to The Utah Statesman.
The family gave Luke a nickname: “Nature Boy.”
“Luke always has his wildlife camera on family trips and takes wildlife photos wherever we go,” Derek wrote.
For the Forsbergs, outdoor adventure was normal family life.
“As for the outdoors, most of our family trips involved camping in the great outdoors. Luke has had the opportunity to visit most of the National Parks out west. He has a poster where he tracks all the National Parks that he has visited,” Derek wrote.
The Nature Boy identity stuck with Luke as he grew.
“I’m so proud of Luke, I really can’t put it into words. I’ve lost count of all the awards that he’s won. He has worked so hard in school. I’m happy for him that he is getting rewarded for his efforts,” Derek wrote.
Life in QCNR brought more than just classes for Luke. It opened up a community of people who shared his curiosity and enthusiasm.
“I have met people who I’ll be friends with for the rest of my life here,” Luke said.
Luke said his most vivid memories aren’t from lecture halls but from early mornings in the field, like a trip to Yellowstone with classmates, where long days together built lifelong friendships.
“You get to know someone really well when you do that,” Luke said.
Luke’s time at USU has been packed with hands-on experiences. His first big step was an aquatics technician internship, surveying native fish and amphibians in Utah.
“That was my first real job experience in our field, and that kind of got my foot in the door,” Luke said.
Next, he headed to Washington to work with baby seals.
He found himself in San Diego, researching whale acoustics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography — a job that pushed his skills in data analysis and coding and inspired the research project that would shape his final year as an undergraduate.
According to Luke, the excitement of research is all about seeing how big ideas connect with the natural world. He said a turning point came with a class taught by wildland resources professor Kari Veblen and doctorate student Maria Stahl, who guided his research.
“My faculty mentor Kari Veblen has been amazing … helping me learn the research process as a whole,” Luke said. “Maria — she just knows how to code. It’s like a wizard.”
Stahl said Luke was invested and easy to talk to and work with.
“For somebody like Luke to be putting so much effort towards this research project from the beginning, I think, was really impressive,” Stahl said.
Luke started his college career at the tail end of the coronavirus.
“That first semester, everything was still pretty shut down … That was really hard because I had done my senior year of high school all online at home, and I was kind of ready to be back in the classroom, and it was really hard to meet people,” Luke said.
According to Luke, loneliness was real, and so were academic challenges.
“Just because you fail one thing, it doesn’t mean that’s the trajectory of the class. It’s just kind of like a stepping stone.”
According to Luke, support from home made a difference.
“He went from being a high school student who needed help figuring things out to being totally independent. He needs no guidance from his parents anymore,” Luke’s mom Laurie Forsberg said. His family, close-knit as ever, finds time for calls, ski trips and holidays together.
Luke’s girlfriend Anja Cieslewicz has been by his side since high school.
“He’s really put himself out there a lot more in terms of involvement,” Cieslewicz said. “He’s really become a lot more social in that way.”
Cieslewicz said Luke puts a great amount of work into his research.
“He never gives anything half effort. He’s always 100% there, and that involves a lot of behind-the-scenes — just, like, reaching out to people and, with this research project, reading a ton of extra scientific literature to make sure he knew everything that was going on in the field,” Cieslewicz said.
Stahl said she noticed the same work ethic.
“He’s really, really invested in this research project, and that manifests in things like turning around the drafts that he’s written with our edits really quickly or every week being like, ‘Hey, I have some new things that I want to talk to you about. Can we have a meeting this week?’” Stahl said.
Stahl said Luke is “very organized” and “even though he’s got a gazillion things going on, he never really seems overwhelmed by it all.”
Luke’s passion for conservation has only grown stronger.
“I’ve always been very passionate about the environment — very passionate about animals. I love seeing animals out in their natural habitats. If anything, I think I just now have the knowledge to kind of understand what I’m seeing and maybe explain that to other people and why it’s important,” he said.
Luke plans to stay at Utah State for graduate school, focusing on elk and climate change in Yellowstone.
“I’m hoping that by doing research, I can inform management that affects these wildlife species,” Luke said.
When he’s not in class or doing research, Luke said he can be found outdoors.
“I hike a bunch in Logan Canyon. I cross-country ski in Green Canyon … I love skiing at Beaver. I love being outside,” he said.
For incoming students, Luke’s advice is simple.
“Get involved,” he said. “Like, it’s scary to meet people. It was a big concern coming in college … Even if you go to one club event every semester, you’ll meet someone there who’s nice, and then maybe you have a new friend.”
From the kid obsessed with wildlife and national parks to the undergraduate leading research projects and preparing for graduate school, Luke’s story is about following what feels right, even when it means forging a path that’s all his own.