Out in nature among wild creatures is where I find much of my inspiration and feel most at home, as I am here wandering through the forest, birding in Germany.
Hello and welcome!
Jennifer Junghans is a writer who moves fluidly between journalism, essays and creative writing. Her work has appeared in numerous publications and outlets for audiences of all ages across print, web and radio.
As a science and environmental journalist, her work has focused on wildlife, nature and conservation, agriculture and food systems, environmental and ecosystem health, environmental justice and climate change. She’s written for Capital Public Radio, TIME magazine (as a contributing reporter), Science News Explores, Highlights for Children, Comstock’s, Orion online, Fodor’s Travel, E-The Environmental Magazine and many others, including those that no longer grace the world, such as Sacramento Magazine and Wildlife Conservation. Her environmental essays have appeared in the anthology “The Contemporary Reader” and on Public Radio Exchange programs “Living on Earth” and “The World.”
She’s also worked as a marketing and communications writer, as well as a science writer for large life science and biotech clients where she also ghostwrote bylined articles for scientists and C-suite executives in Pharmacy Times, Clinical Leader, Modern Healthcare, Genetic Engineering & Biotech News, among others. She is also an experienced editor across diverse roles including a magazine editor and an editorial director for a large science communications firm.
She’s always dreamed of writing environmental workbooks for children, sparked by the first workbook her dad bought her from the Exploratorium in San Francisco when she was young. It wasn’t an academic workbook, but instead one that brought science and math to life, and kept her busy with fascinating activities in the real world.
She’s knee deep in developing workbooks, yet as creative work often does, her first workbooks — a detour from her environmental writing — chose her. What began as a single workbook for children navigating divorce, My Parents’ Divorce Through My Eyes: A Workbook for Children, led to fantastic partnerships and a growing collection of adapted versions. Her first workbook, translated into Spanish, is now a recommended resource for families across Central and South America. Other titles in the collection include a read-together book for parents and young children to help guide important conversations about divorce and an adapted version to help children with autism understand divorce. These last two titles include a parents’ guide on how to talk with children about divorce.
Most recently, she co-authored The Divorce Playbook for Smart Women: Avoid the Battle in Court with licensed clinical professional counselor Ann Cerney. Created for women preparing to divorce, the workbook serves as a compassionate guide to help women slow down, understand their emotional landscape and thoughtfully assess their circumstances. It introduces alternatives to litigation and empowers women to make informed, values-aligned decisions — becoming architects of their own divorce while avoiding unnecessary courtroom battles, when appropriate.
Jennifer has degrees in biological sciences and horticulture, but finds the intricacies, nuances and surprises of life to be the most incredible teacher, which feeds her wild soul and endless curiosity.