Lindsey Coffey, age 28, was a successful college track athlete and completed a pre-law curriculum at Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in political science before entering a successful modeling career in New York and other major cities around the world. She plans to continue her goal to pursue law school following her year as Miss Earth.

Following the announcement Coffey said, "I joined the Miss Earth sisterhood to become a voice, to inspire, and to make a difference in our world. Now is that opportunity. As now is the time for action. Now is the time to be more than your country. We are not just citizens of our nation. We are citizens of the world, and once we start to view one another as such, we will always find success. As your Miss Earth, that is the legacy I will leave behind me."