I spearheaded a program, along with the local Climate Task Force, at my local library for Earth Day to highlight the town’s accomplishments on climate change. The program was tailored towards elementary and middle school-aged kids on the Earth and climate change to inspire their involvement in sustainability practices. In addition to the program, I spoke at my town board in favor of the Climate Action Plan that was being voted on in the coming weeks. A fellow student and I read a letter from my Climate Change class at a town board meeting. I was passionate about being able to speak at my town board because when students show concern for issues, it seems to make a large impact. I wanted to show that I care and I am glad I was part of the impact that made a change for my hometown as the Climate Action Plan was passed. When I reach the top of the mountain, I will leave a message to my generation that we are the future, so what we do has more of an impact than we realize. It's our power now, and we should use it to make a positive impact on our world.

When I was younger, I would force my brother to go to our ditch out front and clean it up with me. We would throw on our boots and grab trash bags to pick up all the trash. The mini water ecosystem always interested me. Now, I realize I had an appreciation for the environment and conservation very early on. This is what has led me to pursue a degree in environmental science with a focus on natural resource conservation. Living in central New York, I do not have many experiences with the ocean, but I appreciate every visit. My favorite activities when visiting the south are beach visits, walks along the water, or boat tours. My favorite trees are mangroves because I am interested in how they grow in salt water and the vast ecosystem they contain. One thing that I am particularly motivated in helping against is pollution. Hearing and reading about an island of trash in the middle of our ocean, I knew I wanted to limit my plastic waste to prevent it from transferring into the ocean. This has led me to start making eco-bricks. My family began saving single-use plastic water bottles and soft plastics. I cut the soft plastics into small pieces and fill the plastic water bottles until the plastic is compact. I am now realizing how much plastic we actually use and how it can easily be saved to prevent pollution. We will be donating these eco-bricks to a local organization to be used for building materials. Going into college, I hope to encourage others to try eco-bricking so we can limit the pollution of plastics in our oceans. Additionally, this year I have had the opportunity to compete in the National FFA Organization Agriculture Issues Forum Leadership Development Event. My group and I developed a presentation on nutrient management on farms as lots of nutrients runoff into water systems that lead into the oceans, such as the Chesapeake Bay. Through lots of research and many presentations, I have grown passionate about this issue of nutrient pollution in bays and other systems as algal blooms form that kill water life and degrade water quality that millions of people rely on. One possible career path I am looking into after I gain my degree in environmental science is working with Soil and Water Conservation to prevent the runoff of nutrients from not only agricultural sources, but also urban sources as it will keep oceans and marine life healthy and benefit the millions of people who depend on these systems for survival. Furthermore, I hope to pursue research during my undergraduate, graduate, and beyond. I currently assist with research at Cornell Univerity in Natural Resources, so the experience has helped solidify that I would like to pursue research and I can apply the skills I've learned to the research. I know I would like to stay within natural resources and I hope to explore research within water system conservation. I truly care about protecting oceans and water systems and I want to use my degree in environmental science to make a difference.

My parents could not get me outside at all when I was younger. I refused any walks or hikes. I just wanted to be inside glued to my tablet. Fast forward to many years later, the pandemic hit. Now, all I wanted was to not be inside. I began hiking and exploring the local woods. I began to realize there was something special about the environment. I wanted to capture everything I saw. This is when I bought my first Canon camera and I took it everywhere with me. I watched YouTube videos to learn how to use my camera and then I would go off into my backwoods and practice new techniques. As I was hiking more, my mother introduced a new goal for the two of us to visit all of the National Parks, which I gladly accepted. To all of the National Parks we have visited so far, I have taken my camera and taken pictures of anything and everything I appreciated--from the deserts of Utah to the lakes of Maine. It is the way I can capture what I find special about the environment and reminds me of why I want to protect and conserve what we have. In the future, I hope to pursue environmental conservation, but I will continue photography to remind others as well as to why we need to protect our land.