Why do you care?

If I don’t care who will? …to put it simply. Whatever happens to the environment won’t just happen to me, it will happen to everyone.

What drives you?

It really bothers me when people don’t recycle and when they litter. Some things are so easy, but people make it hard. People can make environmental choices but are either unaware or just chose not to out of convenience. Not being like that and trying to changing people who are like that drives me. If I do something out of my way, I hope it will influence others; people will learn from my actions.

What inspires you?

My children will be in the equation. I want them to be aware of what is going on the in world and want them to make smart choices. Also, I don’t want my parents’ efforts in raising me to be in vain. When I look at nature or even a bird, I appreciate it for what it is and am saddened that it won’t be there one day. If we lose that bird we will lose not only its beauty but also the services it provides to the world and therefore also to us. The more I know things, the more I want to make things better.

How do you think of yourself?

Modest and conservative. I would care more about using recycled paper then what the latest trends are. I’d choose my family over my friends. If I learn how my actions affect the environment negatively, I’ll do my best to change them. I don’t buy Victoria Secrets because of the kind of paper they use for their catalogues-the paper comes from endangered softwood forests.

Why are you an ecocabe?

Why not? I didn’t even consider myself an EcoBabe until Anne called and asked me. Is it like an eco aware person and a babe?
I am an Eco-Babe because:
• My dream car is a hybrid and not a gas guzzling, low mileage sport utility vehicle
• Organic food rocks
• I aspire to have a green built house
• I want to make a difference (and sometimes I even think I am making a difference)
• I can stand dirt, but I can’t stand trash
• I love nature (I love everything about nature, but especially trees)
There are probably more reasons, but I can’t think of anymore right now….

How do you stay positive and inspired?

You just have to keep working at a problem, even if it’s facing adversity, continuing what your doing for the environment, or even learning. It’s hard for me to stay positive especially after taking conservation biology and having had to develop a conservation plan. Looking at issues from another angle, such as trying to decide what land to conserve for a particular species, really puts things in perspective. It’s just the hope that my actions and decisions will help the environment. You kind of have to be positive to keep on doing what you’re doing because if you don’t see that light, you have no drive to keep on doing what you’re doing. When things finally click in the people you’re trying to convince, it makes you feel good.

How do you deal with bad moods and beat the blues?

I take a deep breath and look out a window. I get my mind off what put me in a bad mood in the first place. The ultimate cure for any unhappy mood is playing with my chinchillas and my dog—animals just know.

Do you have any confessions?

I feel horrible that I drive to school everyday from Vallejo to Rohnert Park. I vanpool to work in SF, but I feel like an environmental hypocrite for driving as much as I do. I have been guilty of not double siding my paper when I print. I have gotten lazy and put tin cans in the garbage. But under other circumstances I am the recycle queen of my house.

What do you do alone?

I think about everything—the future, the past. I sing really loud. I don’t like going shopping alone. I like cleaning alone and doing homework. I like doing really labor intensive tasks by myself.

What crazy thing have you done?

Hmm… I went snorkeling in Hawaii and I can’t swim and had to use one of those floating things. One time when we went to the beach there were tourists standing on the coral in the water (and one of the rules was NO STANDING ON THE REEF). So I took the initiative to tell them to get off the coral. I took 16 units last semester and worked 16 hours. When I think about the driving I do, and then think of what else I could be doing, that’s really crazy.

Who are your role models?

Just in general my parents. They have gone to all feats to provide for my brother and me to make sure we would have a better life. In environmental terms Rachel Carson because she lived in a time where people didn’t listen until after the fact. I hope that doesn’t happen again.

How do you envision the future?

If things keep going the way they are going as far as our current administration’s choices and how people are living now, I see a dreary future. A lot depends on the environment. I see the environment as the foundation of our economy. If we take it away things will crumble. Positively people change. If people are aware about different options, I think they will make a change. It has to affect them personally for them to make a change.

How are you helping to get there?

Getting an education. By being educated, you are more conscious of what is going in the world and which pushes you to want to make a difference. You want to better people’s lives. I know what choices I have and can choose accordingly. If I continue in public policy, I’d like to make a difference that way. If people are willing to listen, I let them know why they should change the way they are doing things.

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