Emily UR - I pledge allegiance to the Earth....

...And all the life which it supports. One planet, in our care. Irreplaceable. With sustenance and respect for all.

Pale Blue Dot

From as far back as I can remember, I've had a spiritual connection with the Earth and had always deemed myself responsible for protecting it. It's becoming quite common to hear myself be called a "flower child" or "hippy" from people who are getting to know me. I would say my love for the environment originated from my lifelong love for stargazing. When I was younger, after my parents went to sleep, my brother would help me with a ladder to climb upon our roof where I would stare at the night sky for hours. The more I learned about the stars, the more insignificant all of my problems seemed to be. Then I learned of neighboring planets in our solar system and was completely taken back by the new found knowledge of mine that we are the only planet (known so far) to harbor life in this solar system. Carl Sagan became my idol because of the way he spoke about our home in his book, Pale Blue Dot (the title of which refers to a picture of the Earth taken by Voyager One from a distance of 3.7 million miles, shown above) when he says "it is our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known."

I didn't smile a lot in pictures when I was younger (16) but
I was so stoked to be on top of the Alps in Switzerland!

 I chose my field in Environmental Science Technology because this program allows me to do the work necessary to preserve the health of the planet for future generations to enjoy as I have. Not to mention, the Earth is pretty damn beautiful place and there's so much of it I still haven't seen yet and with a degree in Environmental Science, I'm not restricted to a certain part of the world because the environment is everywhere! And I love to travel. There's no part of the environment that I care about more than another, I love the whole thing. The ocean has recently taken my primary interest after living in Florida where I've developed an entirely new bond with the ocean and the creatures who call it home.

Chomper!

My IRP is going to be about the chemistry of retention ponds in a very developed area compared to the chemistry of retention ponds in more natural setting. The developed area is going to be the Halifax Plantation golf community where I live. There are constantly new homes and golf courses popping up in this community and I plan to examine the water before and after a rain event to see what kind of runoff is collected in the retention ponds here. The natural setting will be the retention ponds at Tuscawilla Park where I work. After a serious rain event these retention ponds get flooded so I'm curious to see what kind of runoff is collected here by comparison. I must say, the small alligator that lives in the lakes in my community was the inspiration behind my research.

I was ridiculously excited to experience my first cloud forest in Costa Rica,
my boyfriend wasn't really impressed.