Environmental Studies Inquirer
Volume I Issue I
Spring 2018
ENST students in the Senior Capstone Experience class beam with knowledge. Photo: Nich Graham
Environmental Studies Program launches first newsletter Claire Francis Roth
It’s practically a public relations law that growing entities need a newsletter, and Humboldt State University’s Environmental Studies Program is no different. Welcome to the first newsletter in the quickly expanding and interdisciplinary history of HSU environmental studies. Since the program’s inception, environmental studies has made a name for itself by shaping its students into many of the movers and the shakers on campus. If there’s a conversation brewing in The J or The Depot about issues of food justice on campus, there just might be an environmental studies student behind it. The only
two students at the Feb. 2 Budget Open Forum, prepared with questions about the administration? Environmental studies majors. From their very first moments on our redwood-studded campus, environmental studies students are encouraged to remain skeptical about what has been accepted to be the norm. They utilize diverse lenses of thought and knowledge bases to address and challenge structural injustices. These students (and faculty) spend their classroom days working to unpack their privilege, examine the issues of environmental and systematic justice around them, and engage in conversations through interdisciplinary perspectives. The following pages contain highlights from the lives of the current students, alumni, and faculty of HSU environmental studies. Read on to see what they’ve been up to.
Humboldt State University Environmental Studies Program
CONTENTS
From the Program Leader
2
Alumni Highlights
3-5
ENST Student Art
6-8
What’s new, ENST? (Events!)
9-11
Faculty Highlights
12
Acknowledgements
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FROM THE PROGRAM LEADER
The sky is the limit for the interdisciplinary Sarah Jaquette Ray, Environmental Studies Program Leader As the ENST Program wraps up its sixth year at HSU, we have much to celebrate. In 2012, we had 11 majors, and we are now nearing 150. We started with zero full time faculty, but by August 2018, we hope to have two dedicated ENST tenure-line faculty. With the support of the Career Curriculum in the Classroom committee, we integrated a comprehensive professional development curriculum that builds over the four ENST courses. With the help of the Center for Community Based Learning, we converted the senior capstone to a service learning course; as I write, seniors are working all around the community to build gardens, teach, collaborate, mediate, communicate, map, learn, and contribute to their own vision of social change. We launched a website full of useful information, like a student-designed FAQ for prospective students and a list of relevant graduate programs. We have graduated several classes of seniors, and they are doing amazing work in all kinds of places. We hope to start a more robust alumni page on our website highlighting their work. We revised our “emphasis” areas based on feedback from students (adding “Media Production,” “Community Organizing,” and “Appropriate Technology”), and will be seeing some good additions to the curriculum in the 2018-19 catalogue. We successfully completed a five-year program review, and learned from an external reviewer that our program is unique and strong. We now annually sponsor the Environmental Justice award for HSU’s mul-
tilingual literary journal, Toyon. We launched a Peer Mentoring program, and welcomed the indispensable advising and instructional support of Dr. Laura Johnson. We added three enthusiastic affiliated faculty: Janelle Adsit (ENGL), Tim Bean (WLDF), and Nicole Jean Hill (ART), with whom we collaborated to develop a new environment & art course, “Art and Place.” Our majors’ passion, idealism, and critical intersectional lens can be found all over campus and beyond; they attend professional conferences such as University of Oregon’s Public Interest Environmental Law and the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment, organize their own symposia (like the Critical Animal Studies symposium), lead workshops on environmental power and privilege at the Campus Dialogue on Race and Social Justice Summits, and disseminate and publish their research, creative, and activist work. As a visitor to HSU noted about the energy of ENST majors, “there must be something in the water here!” And now, we’re launching a newsletter in order to keep our community of alumni, students, staff, and faculty up to date on all of the ways ENST majors’ energy is circulating in the world. Please consider sending us an update about what is going on with you!
Art flows from ENST student minds Want to see more pieces like these? Flip on over to page 6!
Majesty by Emily Michaels
Sarah Jaquette Ray Program Leader
untitled by Samantha Stone
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ALUMNI HIGHLIGHTS
Words from Environmental Studies Program Alumni These Environmental Studies Alumni may have graduated, but that doesn’t mean that they have stopped pursuing their dreams.
Shiloh Green
After graduation in Fall 2016, I moved to Imperial Valley and worked at the USDA in the Natural Resources Conservation Service as a Farm Bill Assistant, but before I was even offered that job, I was accepted to a fully-funded, five-year PhD program at UC Merced in the Interdisciplinary Humanities department. Needless to say, my stint at the USDA was short-lived. Fast forward a year later, I'm living in Merced, teaching at UCM, and doing work in community decolonization and resistance. Grad school is incredibly demanding (considering we read about three 200-page books every week + work 20 hours a week as TAs), but it's easily one of the most fulfilling things I've ever done, plus I get to make my own hours for the most part. We also adopted a Corgi-mix rescue named Dave who's the most perPhoto: Courtesy of Shiloh Green fect pup, and life is great!
Emma Stokes
Photo: Courtesy of Emma Stokes
Kylie Mosbacher Hi there! My name is Kylie Mosbacher, and I graduated from the ENST Program December of 2016 with a minor in Writing! Progressing through the ENST major was an invaluable experience. Through the support of the program's incredible faculty and the rigorous and rewarding coursework, I entered 2017 equipped with the confidence to pursue Photo: Courtesy of Kylie Mosbacher several independent projects. Through the enduring connections made with faculty, current and former students, and the larger Humboldt community, I was able to bring many dreams to fruition, including the opportunity to present original research at the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment (ASLE) 12th Biennial Conference in Detroit, Michigan this past June! Earlier that spring, I was honored to participate in the "New Approaches to Conservation Conflicts" Symposium with the Center for Tropical Ecology and Conservation through Antioch University New England. Since then I have been hard at work finishing up my first children's book, Sammich and Rumples Meet the Wolf in the Woods, the first in a series on wildlife of conservation interest in the North Coast and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States. Keep an eye out–the book should be out in Humboldt County bookstores by early May of 2018! I am now eagerly waiting to hear back on my applications to graduate school–fingers crossed!
After graduating in Spring 2016, I decided to stick around! I’m currently working as the Strategy Coordinator & Executive Assistant at Humboldt Area Foundation, a local community foundation based in Bayside. My interdisciplinary Environment Studies background has been extremely beneficial in my professional life, where every day I’m thinking about how systems function within our community and working to develop strategies to make these systems more equitable. While Humboldt County certainly faces many challenges, I’m inspired every day by the dedication and care members of our community display, and the great work of organizations and individuals in the area. When I’m not working, I’m usually hanging out with my awesome housemates and our five chickens—Betty Egg White, Yolko Ono, Amelia Egghart, Goldie Hen, and Princess Laya.
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ALUMNI HIGHLIGHTS
Words from Environmental Studies Program Alumni These Environmental Studies Alumni may have graduated, but that doesn’t mean that they have stopped pursuing their dreams.
Ivan Soto
I’m currently a first-year PhD graduate student with the University of California, at Merced. As part of the Interdisciplinary Humanities Graduate Group, I receive five years of funding support through a Teaching Assistantship with research opportunities related to my interest in food insecurity. My TAship involves a course section each semester for about 30 undergraduates with topics ranging from “History of Food,” to “Race, Racism, and Resistance.” These days, I’m learning as much as I can about food, agriculture and labor, borderlands, and studies in the history of science. These areas inform my future dissertation work for an oral history project on food and perceptions of public health in my hometown. Before grad school I was an HSU-ENST graduate with the class of 2016. Soon after my last semester, I applied my degree and Community Organizing emphasis to work as a Community Organizer Photo: Courtesy of Ivan Soto with a non-profit along the US-Mexico border. The position didn’t exist with the organization I wanted to work for, but I shared/argued what I could offer and was able to create my job around what I was passionate about. This included collaborative work with the town I grew up in as well as planning awareness campaigns and educational events in the area. I loved my work there, but received an admission letter to graduate school a few months in. My last year as HSU was scheduled around classes, parttime work, graduate school applications, teaching an ENST course, reaching out to nonprofits I wanted to work with, and spending time with some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. (Thank you, HSU.) I highly encourage current ENST undergrads to search for ways to apply their ENST degree to what they’re passionate about early on. Find graduate programs you like, contact professors with similar academic interests, and apply ahead of time. The same applies for worked-related moves.
Tracy Gatumu
Photo: Courtesy of Tracy Gatumu
Since graduation I worked a few jobs until I found a fulfilling job as a student finance adviser at Trident International University. I mostly assist military students with their financial aid, all the nuts and bolts with college costs. On my spare time I read a lot, reconnect with old friends, practice self love, go on little adventures in Socal, and
try to stay empowered and inspired. It’s been really great finally practicing all that I’ve learnt from my awesome degree. Still contemplating as to when I should start my grad school app! Environmental studies is definitely the most amazing major.
Kelsey Summers Hey there ENST-ers! I recently graduated from HSU and loved the Environmental Studies program. My emphasis was Appropriate Technology and now I am building a Tiny House on wheels! I am build- Photo: Courtesy of Kelsey Summers ing with recycled and upcycled materials and will be off grid (eventually)! I am about half way through the build process and I'm looking for property to start a homestead. "Facebook.com/kelseysthow" is my blog! I was a Co-director at CCAT, check it out on campus if you haven't already! ENST and CCAT helped me pursue my dreams, I encourage you to get out, get your hands dirty, and just show up! Life is short, chase your dream and give it your all.
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ALUMNI HIGHLIGHTS
Casey Melligan After graduating in 2015, I returned to Santa Rosa due to an illness in the family. I worked a few odd jobs before landing a sweet position in a vegan restaurant whose goals included community embetterment via a homeless work exchange program, as well as providing a myriad of alternative health foods. It was through this organization that I was able to land an even cooler job working for a non-profit, worker-run alternative health foods store. It’s been through the Red Clover Workers Brigade and, subsequently, The Santa Rosa Community Market, that I have the opportunity to assistant manage the perishables department. The RCWB maintains a strict non-GMO policy, which in essence strives to eliminate GMOs in the health food circuit by providing the most local, most sustainably produced foodstuffs (our motto being Food for People, Not For Profit). More recently, I have been accepted to the Vermont Law School’s online Masters of Energy Law and Regulation program. It is my sincere hope to use this educational platPhoto: Courtesy of Casey Melligan form to consult and assist at-risk communities from the interests of resource-hungry energy corporations. Several communities, including the 9th ward of New Orleans, have felt the backlash of energy companies in the form of environmental hazards to drinking water, soil quality, and air quality. As a result of these factors, this community was significantly poisoned by Hurricane Katrina, when the failure of the levy system leeched toxic, bitumen-laced water into the 9th ward, and other equally disparate neighborhoods. I want to be on the front lines of preventing that kind of atrocity from ever happening again.
Ashley Perez I am a Child Care Specialist with a local non profit family services organization. After graduating in May of 2016, I became passionate about helping children throughout my community have the best start to life. I believe that this enables children to grow into adults that are able to understand and engage fully as environmental, social, and politically conscious warriors. I have found that this is one of the best ways to strengthen our country and world as we face the vastly complicated problems of the future. I am extremely thankful for pursuing a degree in environmental studies and feel that it helps me in my professional life daily. Photo: (left) Courtesy of Ashley Perez
Harrison Langford I work for OASIS outdoor autism and special issues school. I started as a one-on-one instructor and have since been promoted to Community Outreach Manager. The school is located in Watsonville California. We work with severely autistic students who are for the most part nonverbal. I love to help the student surpass their Individualized Education Program goals, it’s really amazing to see them progress. I have been living in Santa Cruz a little over a year now and I'm loving it. I go sailing weekly when the weather is right and regularly hike and mountain bike as well. I have been checking off items on my bucket list, one being my motorcycle license. I also got myself a motorcycle and ride regularly. Life's been great down here by the beach.
Photo: Courtesy of Harrison Langford
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ENST ART
ENST Student Art Sometimes, there’s no way to say it but through art. Borders by Ty McCarthy There are borders in our minds There are borders on the ground There are many things that separate us In space And time We draw lines in the sand We draw lines our brains There are many things that make us different And yet The same
what i want to do when when i don't know what i want to do. By shanti balam
uncover freedom By Samantha Stone
But if I am you and you are me And we’re a part of everything Then we can be one if we try Yes, we can bridge the great divide Between You and I There’s a hole in the sky There’s a hole in my heart There are many things that bring us closer Yet tear Us apart There is truth in the air Yet it is full of lies There are many things that kill us, darling Yet fill Us with life But if death is just a boundary line Between life and the other side Then we can cross it if we try Yes, we can bridge the great divide Between You and I
Elephant Festival By Emily Michaels the animacy of rhododendron By Samantha Stone
There are borders on the ground There are borders in our minds But these are things that we can control And change In time
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ENST ART
Salmon Run By Colin Mateer Love returns to us in waves By Samantha Stone
snapshot in the era of Morales By Samantha Stone
Untitled By Colin Mateer
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ENST ART
ENST Student Art Sometimes, there’s no way to say it but through art.
Heart of the matter By Samantha Stone
Somatic trauma and release By Samantha Stone
delicious decay By Samantha Stone
same By Samantha Stone
A tribute to introverts: it's okay to be a cactus sometimes By Samantha Stone
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WHAT’S NEW, ENST?
An Evolving Program What in the world has the Environmental Studies Program been up to?
New ENST student resource alert: peer mentoring Nich Graham, ENST Peer Mentor
I see the peer mentoring as a resource of two folks who have been in the ENST program and know some in's/out's. With Molly Gilmore (the other ENST Peer Mentor) being here since freshman year, she can offer information about classes she enjoyed, bringing a minor into the major, and her experience; while I'm able to speak on what it was like for a transfer with 2-ish years. We both have information on navigating DARS, resources on campus, how to graduate, how to dismantle Capitalism (ain't even joking here). How it works--We host workshops once a month during the last Thursday and usually visit ENST classes to let students know about what we offer. It's in Library room 116. We have some snacks, non-edible goodies (KNOWLEDGE!), and some empowerment. It's a good time. You could also just send Molly or me an email to set up a one on one meeting. We're flexible! We're looking to make connections with other ENST students. It's important that a student can go to their advisor to get information, but if we build a base community where students know how to operate DARS, cool classes, professors they liked, workshops, etc., then the amount of traffic is decreased for advisors getting asked the same questions over and over again.
I believe it’s a form of resilience, especially as the ENST program grows, there's only one Sarah and the other faculty members, so there's only so many office hours. If students can come together to help each other out I think it speaks pretty loudly of the intergenerational (and institutional) knowledge being passed on and built upon. Peer mentoring can be what ever the environmental studies students want. We're not trying to just do the archaic method of ‘come to our office at these designated hours because we're getting paid.’ Though we get paid, that's not why we're doing this. We want to help you out, we understand you may not have the same scheduling as our open hours, and that's why we're flexible. We don't want to make this already harder then it is (because who wants to climb up Founders Hall time and time again?). We're here for you, and we're looking to co-produce some knowledge with y'all. Nich Graham ENST Peer Mentor
Upcoming ENST events you won’t want to miss out on! Thurs., March 8 — 7pm Coming of Age at the End of the World: Eco-Grief, College Students, and Teaching Climate Change What? Public lecture given by ENST Program Leader Sarah Ray as a part of KHSU’s My Favorite Lecture: Remarkable Talks by HSU Educators. Where? Plaza Grill View Room in Arcata (upstairs in Jacoby’s Storehouse). Reception begins at 6pm. In this lecture, Sarah will talk about her next book project, which is all about the challenges of teaching depressing material about climate change and social injustice to college students in this political and historical moment. She describes strategies for channeling students’ emotional responses to the material to help empower them to effect change.
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WHAT’S NEW, ENST?
An Evolving Program What in the world has the Environmental Studies Program been up to?
Upcoming ENST events you won’t want to miss out on! Tues., March 20 — 3-5pm CCAT Communal Garden Spring Equinox Party What? Celebrating the completion of CCAT’s community garden project. Snacks provided!
nal Garden, at our Spring Equinox Celebration! The Celebration will be located at CCAT on Tuesday, March 20th between 3-5p.m. We would like to come together to give gratitude to all of those who have contributed to the manifestation of the garden and open the season with great cheer. Ryan Sendejas Community Garden Coordinator
The site of the wheelchair-accessible garden beds before ground was broken. Photo: Courtesy of Ryan Sendejas
Where? Campus Center for Appropriate Technology. Food is power– Not only in the sense of it gives nutrients to our body but also has the potential to empower and create healthy communities, ecosystems, and economies. My name is Ryan Sendejas, I am a senior in the environmental studies community and the Community Garden Coordinator for the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology (CCAT) here at HSU. When we try to pick out any food by itself, we find it intermingled with everything else— culture, health, ecosystems, community, economy, and so on; with such deep-rooted interconnectedness, there is vast potential for resilient ecosystems and communities. March 20th, 2018 is the spring equinox— the day where the celestial equator shifts, days become longer, and the life of spring begin to thrive. On this day, CCAT would like to invite everyone in the HSU community and beyond to partake in the celebration of the completion of the Humboldt State Commu-
Ryan Sendejas, gardener extraordinaire. Photo: Claire Francis Roth
A view into the newly-constructed garden beds. Photo: Courtesy of Ryan Sendejas
Students are hard at work on the new wheelchair-accessible garden beds for all bodies, near CCAT. Photo: Courtesy of Ryan Sendejas
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WHAT’S NEW, ENST?
An Evolving Program What in the world has the Environmental Studies Program been up to?
Samantha Garcia, ENST Junior, Appropriate Technology Emphasis
Environmental Studies can be an incredibly depressing major at times, and this conference was such a refreshing morale booster. It’s so motivating and inspiring to be surrounded by such passionate people from all walks of life doing amazing things out in the real world. It was my first time attending the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference and I had some idea of what it was going to be like based off what others who have gone before me said, but this conference was beyond my expectations. Eugene is an awesome place and I couldn’t have chosen to go with a more admirable and caring crew. I’m already looking forward to PIELC 2019.
ENST Meets PIELC 18 environmental studies students travelled 295 miles north in search of knowledge at the 2018 Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC). Here is one student’s thoughts on the conference and photos from the Eugene, Oregon area.
Waterfall! Photo: Courtesy of Ty McCarthy
Environmental studies students and alumni pose in front of their beautiful Airbnb in Eugene, Oregon. Photo: Courtesy of Ty McCarthy
The Public Interest Environmental Law Conference banner welcomes attendees. Photo: Courtesy of Samantha Garcia
A snowball battle breaks out on the drive back down to CA. Photo: Ty McCarthy
Peace is restored after the snowball battle. Photo: Courtesy of Ty McCarthy
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FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS
Environmental Studies Program Faculty Highlights The faculty of environmental studies are always up to interesting things. Dr. Laura Johnson came to Humboldt in August 2016 and has since taught a variety of courses in Sociology, Anthropology, Geography, and Environmental Studies. In addition to teaching, she just wrapped up publishing her dissertation in the form of three articles. The first, 'Placing local food systems: Farm tours as place-based sustainability education,' was published in 2016 in the Journal of Sustainability Education, co-authored with her advisor, Dr. Gary Schnakenberg, and HSU geography professor Dr. Nick Perdue. The second, 'Gendering strategies for civic agriculture: The case of Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture and the High Country Farm Tour,' also co-authored with her advisor, was published in 2017. And the third, 'Enchanting experiences of reconnection: Engaging relational frameworks and photo elicitation with farm tour experiences,' is forthcoming in Gender, Place, and Culture. Photo: Courtesy of Laura Johnson Laura conducted her dissertation research in the mountains of North Carolina, a place she calls home, in 2014. Her feminist ethnographic and participatory action research allowed her to visit and volunteer on farms, have long chats with farmers, collaborate with nonprofits, and live in a barn with her dog, Moxey. (It was the best summer of her life.)
John Meyer
Dr. Laura Johnson
Photo: Courtesy of John Meyer
When the spring semester ends, John Meyer will head to the UK, where he's been invited to serve as a Visiting Scholar at the University of Reading Centre for Climate and Justice. There, he'll meet with the center's Ph.D. students and faculty over a several week period and will organize a workshop on the theme of "everyday sustainability and climate populism.�
Dr. Janelle Adsit Dr. Janelle Adsit teaches Environmental Writing (ENGL311), Literary Publishing (ENGL460 & ENGL461), and a number of writing classes. She also co-facilitates a Writing through Grief workshop at Hospice of Humboldt. Dr. Adsit came to HumPhoto: Courtesy of Janelle Adsit boldt in August 2015. During her time at HSU, she has put three books under contract and has published a number of articles on identity, representation, and creative writing. Dr. Adsit also serves as the faculty advisor for the student-run publication Toyon. She has worked with Dr. Ray to create a Toyon award to recognize environmental justice writing and art. Winners of this award see their work published in Toyon Multilingual Journal of Literature and Art and receive a modest monetary award. All students and community members are encouraged to submit their work at https:// www.toyonliterarymagazine.org. Dr. Adsit encourages everyone to meet this year's award winner at the upcoming release party at 6pm on Thursday, March 22nd in the KBR.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
That’s a wrap for this issue of Environmental Studies Inquirer!
This publication would not be possible without participation of and content submissions by ENST students & faculty. Thanks to all!
Managing Editor/Layout/Design: Claire Francis Roth, Environmental Studies Class of 2017,
Help the students of HSU Environmental Studies continue to seek out irreplaceable experiences & tools.
Emphasis in Media Production
Donate here: https://alumni.humboldt.edu/giving/ environmental-studies
Contributors:
The ENST Program thanks you!
Dr. Janelle Adsit Shanti Balam Samantha Garcia Tracy Gatumu Nich Graham Shiloh Green Dr. Laura Johnson Harrison Langford Colin Mateer Ty McCarthy Casey Melligan John Meyer Emily Michaels
Have you heard about the HSU Environmental Studies Club? ENST Club sponsors activities to foster community in the ENST major and beyond. Please consider joining the Club if you are an HSU student and have ideas about outings, workshops, or events you'd like to coordinate with the Club to organize. Contact Lily Farrell, club president, at lwf35@humboldt.edu.
Kylie Mosbacher Ashley Perez Sarah Jaquette Ray Claire Francis Roth
If you have questions about the Environmental Studies Program, please contact Sarah Ray, ENST Program Leader, at Sarah.Ray@humboldt.edu.
Ryan Sendejas Ivan Soto Emma Stokes Samantha Stone
Have content ideas or suggestions for the next issue? Please send your comments to Claire.Roth@humboldt.edu.
Kelsey Summers Aaron Taveras
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