My journey as an environmentalist began at a very young age when I first fell in love with the mountains, the forests, the streams, and the ponds that surrounded my family and I in our quaint, cabinesque home in the forests of Vermont. Nature, to me, was no obscure “other,” no vacation destination, no novelty. It was my backyard, my neighbor, my playground. And, as I frolicked among the beauty of Vermont’s outdoors with my three sisters—the blonde ball of endless, adventure-seeking energy that I was in my youth—I fell in love. As I grew older, I learned not only to love nature, but to respect it. And, as I continued to grow and learn—as one inevitably does—I yearned to protect it.
I subsequently served on a trail crew with the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, studied “abroad” on a farm in upstate New York in a semester dedicated to the study and practice of sustainability, and earned a degree in Conservation Biology. My course load introduced me to the many problems plaguing our environment as well as a plethora of possible solutions going forward. While in school, I engaged in focused studies on microplastic pollution in North Country waterways and in the role of pollinators in agroecosystems.
When I left school, I spent a month hiking the Long Trail—a 273-mile trail traversing the state of Vermont—with my twin sister (also a Conservation Biology major, for the record). I then spent the last two years serving in AmeriCorps NCCC (the National Civilian Community Corps): a national community service program for young adults ages 18-24. My two consecutive terms of service took me to Colorado, Missouri, Kansas, California, Florida, Idaho, and Puerto Rico. My service spent in Florida and Puerto Rico was in response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria that had left many neighborhoods battered and destroyed. It was through this work, that I witnessed firsthand the consequences of our changing climate.
My passion for the environment is indelible, and although my educational background and experiences have laid a strong foundation for an environmental career later on down the road, I am not yet ready to embark on a career—at least not in the conventional sense. And so, I find myself, a 24-year-old environmentalist living at home with my parents pondering my next move in life. It likely entails travel, but while I iron out those details, I wanted to begin shaping my life to live and act in a way that more accurately reflects and conveys my environmental ethic. I strongly believe that we are all responsible for being conscientious stewards of this earth, and that everyone—even the indifferent, apathetic, climate change-deniers among us—can make simple lifestyle changes to live and act in a less environmentally-destructive way.
And so, the English minor in me decided to start this blog to chronicle my journey to live a more consciously environmentalist life: starting with waste reduction. The “three R’s” of waste reduction—reduce, reuse, recycle—will shape my approach as I explore solutions to reducing, reusing, and recycling the waste produced in my everyday life.
It is my hope that as others follow me on this journey—even if it’s just one person—they will find ways to reduce the waste in their life and be inspired to do their part in protecting this earth we all share.
Coming up
On a weekly basis, I plan to identify one source of waste in my life and research, explore, and evaluate possible solutions to the waste. At the end of each week I will post a blog detailing my findings and evaluating the practicalities of the possible solutions. The first source of waste I will examine is food scraps. Needless to say, I’m “eggcited” to begin!
