Welcome, tell us a little about yourself

My name is Dana Schmidt. I’m a recent Cornell graduate moving to Houston from Upstate New York in hopes of expanding my understanding of environmental policy. Although I am accustomed to the lush forests of Upstate New York where I did my senior thesis on invasive earthworms and fungal communities, I also lived as an exchange student in Emden, Germany for a year. There, the flat greenery was broken up only by the dikes set up to reclaim earth from the sea. I’m standing at the forefront of my career- excited to help create a more sustainable world, but still unsure as to how I will be doing so. I can’t wait to start volunteering for the Sierra Club and contributing to the meaningful work that they do. 

Describe the first time you felt a strong affinity for nature?

I think the first time I felt attached to nature, I was playing in the grass… It’s not so much a visual memory, rather a smell that is etched strongly into my mind- the smell of fertile, fresh soil. I remember breathing in deeply and feeling my heart beat faster and being filled with this sense of connection to the Earth. When I was a kid, I would climb to the top of the Jungle Gym to feel the wind, pretending that I, like Disney’s Pocahontas, was especially attuned to nature. At that same age, I would collect bugs and spiders to play with in my dollhouse. As a fifth-grader, I would lead 6-year-olds around our schoolyard field, teaching them all I knew at that point. The crowd favorite was always the spittlebug- a tiny creature that would create a shield of bubbles around it, out of its own ‘spit’, to hide in when they heard predators coming. Not surprisingly, the image bubbles and spit resonated very well with them.

Describe a time you participated at a Sierra Club event? What did you do and what motivated you to participate?

I haven’t yet participated in a Sierra Club event, unfortunately, as there wasn’t one in my town growing up. What motivated me to volunteer for the Sierra Club, rather, was what I had learned about them in my college coursework. I deeply admired the public participation that this group has exercised in legislative history, holding agencies accountable for their actions and encouraging transparency in agency decision-making.

What kind of activity or activities would you like to see the Houston Sierra Club to do more of and why?

Seeing from afar, it seems like the Houston Sierra Club does a lot of hiking trips, which seem like a lot of fun. Something I’d like to see would be events aimed at the young professionals of Houston- perhaps a happy hour in the downtown area or a few rounds of disc golf at Buffalo Bayou park.

What environmental message do you have for young people?

As a young person myself, I have no wisdom yet to bestow. But I would like to say that together, we can make the world a better, greener, place!