Benina Sholyn Cerno is Native American from Casa Blanca, Laguna Pueblo (K’awaika), New Mexico. Her clans are Turkey from her mother and Sun from her father. At a young age, she had the desire to become a scientist by entering yearly in the school science fair. She graduated from the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) with a certificate in Vision Care technology. Then she moved to Kansas to go to Haskell Indian Nations University, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous and American Indian Studies focusing on Environment Justice, a pre-law program. She participated in Student Council as a Representative/President of the United Pueblos Council, all while being a single parent. She graduated with honors. She returned to SIPI where she obtained a Natural Resources Management degree. Working for the Bureau of Land Management and the Environmental and Natural Resources (NR) Department for the Pueblo of Laguna gave her the opportunity to: Research and monitor wildlife as well as collecting weather and game camera data. She developed standard operating procedures, created natural resources management plans, allocated permits for hunting, wood collection, and land use, identified potential problems, and remediated resolutions in the NR Program. She assisted in development and organized Tribal Youth Programs and produced collaborative structures (spring restoration/rain harvesting) to support and facilitate environmental conservation. Her writing was awarded grants to support Tribal Rain harvesting and Sustainability Projects. Today, she works as a Protégé/Environmental Scientist for the Dine Development Corporation 4C supporting NASA's efforts in Environmental Management.