Because I am from a military family, I have lived in my hometown of Jacksonville, NC on and off for about half my life. Every time I would move back, the state of the river which the city is located on, the New River, would change: but for the better.
In the 1980s, the waste treatment plant for the city of Jacksonville failed. Untreated waste filled with harmful chemicals was dumped into the river, drastically damaging the ecosystem that the river supported. The citizens of Jacksonville finally took action when a large amount of hog waste from a nearby hog farm was accidentally spilled into the river. The state of the river was brought to attention at town hall meetings, and many responsible and devoted citizens began the process of cleaning up the river. NC State, UNCW, and the New River Foundation became partners in the effort. One result was Sturgeon City Institutes, a summer program for local students in which I was involved in for three summers. It aimed to teach the younger generation about the measures the city has taken to save the river and how important it is to keep up the legacy.
Jacksonville has since come a long way (even though it still has a ways to go) and has served as a model for other coastal towns. When I moved to northern Virginia, I was interested in finding similar programs that focused on a mindfulness of the environment. About an hour north from George Mason, The Prince William Conservation Alliance has recently started a conservation landscape project to set an example on how anybody can conserve nature in northern Virginia despite rapid urban growth.
There are plenty of opportunities for college students to take responsibility for the environment and get involved in the green initiative. The Green Fest in DC, for example, was just this past weekend, and GMU organizations such as Sustainability LLC, Organic Garden Club, and Green Patriots promote environmental consciousness.
Has anybody been involved in or held a leadership position in any environmental programs in or around their hometown?
October 10th, 2012 at 5:03 am
Awesome post Mimi and an inspiring story from your personal experience. I’m particularly interested in focusing on the partnership given our conversation in class last week. A problem arises, at least in part due to negligence from one sector (private, profit-making) and the other two sectors (two government funded universities and an association) working together to put that in check, attend to the damage and educate for the future. You’ll often see that the most effective strategies to make change involve partnerships across sectors. I wonder if any for-profit organizations were also involved here as well (sometimes local businesses will join together to make agreements they all promise to abide by).
Think about the social capital involved in getting a town to respond to a problem this big!