Note: This article was written in March, for Women’s History Month.
Interview #1: Audrey Wheeler
When did you graduate from Roosevelt High School?
I graduated in 2011.
Did you go straight into college afterwards? If so, where did you attend? Describe where life took you after graduation!
After graduating, I went to Colorado College, a small liberal arts school in Colorado Springs, CO. I was one of two RHS alums that year to go to Colorado College, so it was a big leap for me because I barely knew anyone at school or anything about Colorado! The college operates on the “Block Plan”, meaning students take one class at a time for 3.5 weeks. This way of learning was intense, but fun, allowing flexibility for classes to go on extended field trips and learn in a hands-on way. I majored in Environmental Science and got a minor in Dance, graduating from college in 2015. Colorado College has a Public Interest Fellowship Program, in which local nonprofits offer summer and year-long fellowships to recently graduated students. I got a fellowship at Conservation Colorado, an environmental advocacy nonprofit in Denver, that started right after I graduated. That fellowship turned into a job, and I ended up working there for nearly four years. Last March I was looking for my next step to advance my career and found an opening at The Nature Conservancy in Colorado.
You now work for the Nature Conservancy, one of the biggest environmental nonprofits, in Denver. What’s your job like?
The Nature Conservancy is massive — there are more than 4,000 employees worldwide. I work for the Colorado chapter as a grant writer and content creator. That means I spend most of my days talking to my coworkers about the conservation projects they’re working on and then writing about them for donors, members, and the public. In Colorado, some of our big projects include conserving land to protect nature, bringing nature’s benefits into cities, keeping our rivers healthy and flowing, advancing state policies on climate change, and preventing large, destructive wildfires.
What drew you to your current profession?
I always wanted a career that would have a positive impact on the world. I was drawn to the environmental field because of the way environmental problems connect the future of humanity with the wellbeing of the planet. People need clean water, healthy air, and thriving natural systems to survive. The more we fight for humans to have equal access to those natural resources, the more we also protect those resources for the next generation.
TNC states that their biggest priorities are tackling climate change, building healthy cities, protecting land and water, and providing sustainable food and water. Why is it so important that women, in particular, be supported in this mission?
Women are central to all these priorities. According to Project Drawdown, one of the most effective and important ways to prevent climate change is to educate girls. Women with more years of education are likely to have fewer and healthier children and to actively manage their reproductive health. More education also means their agricultural plots are better managed, more resilient, and produce more food. Around the world, women are more likely to provide for their families — and that means that educating women and focusing our work on empowering women to be better stewards of their land and water are some of the best ways to make large-scale change.
It’s Women’s History Month! Who are some empowering role models or mentors that helped get you to where you are today? Any specifically from RHS?
My mom is an awesome role model! She worked at the Environmental Protection Agency for more than 35 years, playing a big role in cleaning up SuperFund sites around the Northwest and in advocating for tribal voices to be part of solutions for nature. Another is Sally Jewell, who is on the board of The Nature Conservancy, but previously led the Obama Administration’s Department of Interior and was CEO of REI in Seattle. From Roosevelt, Donna, the cross country coach, was a great mentor in proving that you can set ambitious goals and surpass them.
What’s some advice you would give female students at RHS today? Or just some food for thought for the general student body?
You can, in fact, do what you set your mind to do! I wanted to have a meaningful job and help the environment with my career, and so far I’ve been lucky enough to do exactly that. I also wanted to be a dancer, and that dream has also been fulfilled in some really unexpected but awesome ways. If you keep doing what you love, you can build your life around it.
Interview #2: Anjali Fisher
When did you graduate from Roosevelt High School?
2011
Did you go straight into college afterwards? If so, where did you attend? Describe where life took you after graduation!
I did, at the time I really thought I wanted to be a pantsuit-wearing diplomat so I went to American University to study international relations. But once I got there I started taking classes about cities — urban anthropology, sustainable urbanism, urban climate adaptation, water and energy infrastructure — and I’ve never been the same since. After graduation I moved to New York and got a job at Van Alen Institute, a nonprofit that hosts urban design competitions and public programming about people’s relationship to their cities. At Van Alen I got to direct short environmental films about different ways people are adapting to climate change across the country, and at different scales. That experience made me realize I was ready for grad school to keep studying this stuff.
You’re now getting your masters in urban planning at Cornell. Why did you decide to go into that field?
Planners are cool because they are sort of the caretakers of human environments. I chose planning because I want to be able to steer urban growth in ways that are socially and ecologically just. That can take many forms — from making sure public transit and healthy food are affordable and accessible, to curbing sprawl in environmentally sensitive areas, to zoning for affordable housing in places where the rent is too damn high.
Favorite things about your area of study?
That one of the core tenets of planning is the understanding that life is complex and its actors are interdependent. That truth is reflected in practice, because planning is so interdisciplinary — it requires collaboration between designers, engineers, architects, developers, artists, communities, local government, historians…. Planners get to be the translators and connectors for all these fields to work together to serve the public.
Urban planning has historically been dominated by men. The World Bank recently came out with an article saying that the majority of cities around the world have been designed for and by men, and the same can be said for urbanist writing. How are you, and other women, making your voices heard, and why is it so important?
It’s true that most American cities were designed by white, middle-aged men and failed to consider the urban experiences of marginalized communities. That’s why it is vital to keep diversifying the planning field — so that we can accommodate the needs of our diverse society! If we don’t have diverse voices at the table, very little will change for the better. I’m honored to have been elected President of the Women’s Planning Forum at Cornell, which is a space to celebrate women’s contributions to planning and to discuss gender issues in the field. It’s important to shed light on the untold stories of women who fought to make a difference. It’s also important to let minority groups know that, by engaging in the planning process, they have the power to change their cities for the better.
It’s Women’s History Month! Who are some empowering role models or mentors that helped get you to where you are today? Any specifically from RHS?
Shoutout to Cora Mackoff (recently retired), whose teaching skills and wisdom never cease to amaze me. And to Ms. Lynn Kodama, whose technique of throwing stuffed animals at us if we mis-conjugated a verb was actually the most effective teaching strategy! I owe my love of the Spanish language to her.
What’s some advice you would give female students at RHS today? Or just some food for thought for the general student body?
I would advise students to take time off between high school and college if you don’t feel ready to commit to a path/major just yet. I didn’t do that, but I wished I had. The world is big, and after high school, you change so much as a person. Taking a year to work, write, travel, etc. may give you the time and mental space to think deeply about who you want to be, and how you want to move forward.
