In this episode of “Humble Beginnings,” we chat with ICF’s Michael Jung about his unpredictable path to executive director of the company’s climate center. Jung, born in Korea, shares the story of the first American his father met and how it influenced him to pursue medicine. When Jung and his family came to the States, they landed in Appalachia Kentucky after a few extreme climate-related incidents moved them out of other areas.

Eventually, Jung went to Yale for environmental science and East Asian studies. His passion and interest in the environment stem from many aspects of his life, from essentially being a climate refugee to his time in the Boy Scouts. An immigrant mentality also drove many of his extracurriculars. Jung didn’t just dabble in hobbies; he excelled in them. He tells us about being a U.S. Fulbright fellow, a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, a former competitive ballroom dancer, a backpacker and more. Plus, hear how he snagged a career with ICF after it was the “one that got away” right after college, and what landed his family in Oregon.