ALUMNI PROFILE
STUDYING GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE What and how was your academic experience after leaving Waldorf, both personally and academically? I went to the Santa Fe Waldorf School from first to ninth grade until 2009. I then went to the Verde Valley International Baccalaureate School in Sedona, AZ, and graduated in 2012. Even though I loved ninth grade at SFWS, it was always my dream to go to Verde Valley, which was founded by my grandparents. The school had 100 students from 17 countries. Going from the Waldorf grading style to a more rigorous and academic grading system was an adjustment, but it took me only a semester to adapt. I really enjoyed my entire experience.
Emma Warren
Grade 9, 2009
BA, Environment Science and Sociology, minor, Art and Art History St. Lawrence University, 2016 Joint International MS in Sustainable Development Universities of Graz and Basel, planning to complete in October 2020
“ART AND CARE AND THOUGHTFULNESS WERE PUT INTO OUR LESSON BOOKS, AND THAT HAS AFFECTED HOW I THINK AND ACT IN LIFE.” Warren, fourth from the right, with a team of Nepalese local workers, volunteers and business partners
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Then I decided that I was meant to be on the East Coast. I’m not really sure why, but I applied early decision to St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. I fell in love with St. Lawrence primarily because I had visited in the summer and I didn’t realize how cold it got in winter. So, freshman year was very rough. It was -20° F for a month, and I was constantly frozen and missed the Santa Fe sunshine. But once I decided on my major, I felt more comfortable because I was taking courses that I had chosen and that I was interested in. I also studied abroad in New Zealand, and I had an internship in Costa Rica so I got a lot out of my experience (despite the terrible winters).
How did you choose your profession? I took two years off before going for my masters. I thought maybe I wanted to work in environmental law, so I came home to Santa Fe and did an internship at the New Mexico Environmental Law Center. It was a good experience, but it ended up not being what I wanted to do. I also worked at the Cowgirl Cafe, which I really loved—they are amazing people. Lucy, my little sister (SFWS Grade 4, 2009) and I had been planning to travel together since I was about 12. We opened a joint bank account, and both lived at home and worked three jobs. She skipped eighth grade and graduated from Verde Valley School at age 17, so it worked out that we graduated the same year even though we are five years apart. On September 1, 2016, we took off with a one-way ticket to South America and went to eight different countries, going where the wind carried us and following the advice of locals and other travelers. After that, we came home for Christmas for 10 days, and in the beginning of 2017, I went with my best friend to Iceland, the Netherlands, and England. Lucy went to Vietnam and Myanmar. In February, we met up in Kathmandu, Nepal, where we worked at the Maitreya Pathshala Waldorf school in Pokhara. The people were so lovely and I really fell in love with Nepal. We worked and trekked, and I actually met my partner Julian Hungerbuehler there, whom I’m living with now. He is from Zurich, Switzerland. In April, I flew home to help open our family coffee shop, the Coffee Wheel. I painted, organized all the equipment, and learned so much about how to get deals, make partnerships and source local products. After that, in September 2017, I started traveling again to Asia with Julian and ended up back in Nepal where we stayed for 10 months building a sustainable rammed earth building on an organic farm. I went to source supplies for the Coffee Wheel but ended up becoming the volunteer coordinator. I did budgeting, fundraising, helped manage the farm, and bought materials. We lived in tents for eight months on the farm that was a 15-minute walk from
