Can you point to a key moment in your studies or life that made you decide to focus on sustainability?

I became aware of the importance of sustainability my junior year of high school. I decided to join my school’s environmental club, and during the meetings we talked about issues such as plastic pollution and climate change, and it really hit me that these were such important topics. I was baffled about how I hadn’t heard about these issues extensively until then. Seeing oceans full of plastic and learning about the ramifications of climate change (plus more) awakened a passion in me for sustainability that hadn’t existed before, I think mainly because I just hadn’t been exposed to it very much beforehand. From then on I knew that I couldn’t go back to the life I lived before, knowing that all of these issues were occurring, and that I had to pursue this as a career in the future.

Tell us about the most memorable moment, discovery or insight from your summer experience.

One major insight this summer was about network weaving, a concept I knew nothing about prior to this. Network weaving means intentionally forming connections between people to form trust and all together help any organization accomplish their goals more effectively. You can’t make change if your members/co-workers don’t have trust and the ability to collaborate. Learning more about how to form these intentional connections was truly eye opening, and I can see how this can be applied to any job in the future. I look forward to putting these skills into practice and further developing them no matter where I end up.

How has this experience impacted your perceptions regarding sustainability research?

Through this experience, I learned more about what international sustainability research looks like. Up until now, I had only worked with more domestic scale organizations, but working with Ocean Knowledge-Action Network showed me what global interactions in sustainability looks like. Ocean Knowledge-Action Network is a network composed of ocean advocates/scientists/etc. from across the globe, and more-so provides a means of collaboration between different partners. Through connecting different partners, they open new paths for the exchange of ideas and potential collaborations. I had no idea that this type of organization, a network, even existed before this. So I’d say my understanding of the forms sustainability research can take has been expanded through this experience.

Can you point to a key moment in your studies or life that made you decide to focus on sustainability?

I grew up on a farm in California, where my mom always made sure I was conscious of how every decision I made impacted the earth. I made sure to watch where I would step, as well as remind my peers to never litter or leave trash on the ground. I couldn’t point to a specific moment because I have always lived a life conscious of sustainable behavior.

Tell us about the most memorable moment, discovery or insight from your summer experience.

I absolutely loved the ability to travel, and learn from people who had a completely different upbringing than me. I am always open to learning new ways to evolve and prosper, and I am especially proud of my ability to do that this summer.

How has this experience impacted your perceptions regarding sustainability research?

I think that the experience has helped me to truly understand that I want to be on the communications side of sustainability research, and I really want to impact the communities perceptions of climate related issues.

Can you point to a key moment in your studies or life that made you decide to focus on sustainability?

My interest in studying sustainability started in middle school when my friends and I watched Blackfish on Netflix for the first time. We were moved by the stories and soon after, I found myself watching documentaries and television shows on anything conservation and environment-related. Watching Cowspiracy at 13 years old changed my life at the time because I have never seen anything like it before. Although I have negative critiques about the film now, I think that was the first time I felt climate anxiety. Protecting the environment was all I could talk about, and once I got to high school I began volunteering in local events like community clean-ups. I didn’t know much about careers in sustainability other than being an environmental scientist but witnessing my hometown be surrounded by wildfires in 2017 was a turning point in my life and studies. Seeing Latinx workers, including my parents, risk their health to pick grapes and support the tourism industry motivated me to study sustainability to better understand climate justice. I am committed to studying and working in sustainability through an interdisciplinary lens because there are environmental injustices all around the world, so we must approach climate change solutions from various perspectives and techniques.

Tell us about the most memorable moment, discovery or insight from your summer experience.

A memorable moment from this summer was connecting with scientists from the West Indian Ocean region and other folks within the Ocean Knowledge-Action Network. Through these conversations, I learned how many people incorporate their narratives into their work, and was introduced to environmental organizations that focus on highlighting people’s stories. Being an interdisciplinary scholar, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to find opportunities related to my interest in storytelling and educational media. I learned so much from Linwood and Stella and I am excited by how diverse the environmental sector is becoming.

How has this experience impacted your perceptions regarding sustainability research?

GSS introduced me to new methods of sustainability research as I only had exposure to California or U.S.-based research projects before this summer. My background is in agriculture, so I learned a lot about marine conservation through Ocean Knowledge-Action Network and the scientists I connected with from the WIO region. Although I couldn’t understand the writing, I saw many students present their research when walking around Sorbonne Université. It is very inspiring to see and connect with scholars from around the world. Conducting research is not an easy task, and it can feel like it might not make a grand difference at the moment. But this summer experience taught me how we are all interconnected and how important it is to exchange ideas at a global scale. There are many ways to contribute to research and I am happy to see opportunities grow for transdisciplinary research in sustainability.