SierraScape January - August 2018
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CANDIDATE STATEMENTS
Executive Committee (ExCom) members meet once per month to authorize club actions and assist activities of other Eastern Missouri Group (EMG) members.
There are seven voting members on the Excom. This year there are three vacancies and four candidates, plus there is a write in option. Voting instructions are given on the ballot page (see page 6).
The following are statements by candidates for the ExCom, listed in alphabetical order.
Rob Polzin
My name is Rob Polzin, I am 27 years old, and am currently acting as treasurer for the EMG ExCom. I have served on the EMG Executive Committee for the last six years and would love the chance to serve another term. I have previously acted as the treasurer for the Outdoors Club while attending St. Louis Community College-Meramec, and helped to plan and manage club camping trips and fundraisers. While in high school I was a member of Envirothon, an ecology-based volunteering and competitive group. I have also participated in Missouri Stream Team cleanup projects on the Meramec and Missouri Rivers. I enjoy hiking the trails and forests in the St. Louis and Central Missouri region, as well as canoeing or kayaking on the rivers of this area. I have greatly enjoyed working on the ExCom for these past years, and am hoping to be more involved with the organization as a whole now that I have completed my undergraduate program, and to use my connections to get more young people involved in environmental advocacy. I would love to again have the opportunity to use my passion for the environment to work for the betterment of our region.
Ken Schechtman
I am a lifelong activist committed to the notion that change does not happen unless ordinary people join together and demand it. Environmentalists have been doing so for decades, and anyone who considers the clean air bill or the spate of regulations implemented by the Obama administration must marvel at what we have accomplished. But because those successes are uniquely imperiled by new leadership in Washington and Jefferson City, the efforts of groups like the Sierra Club have never been more important.
I have been a member of the Executive Committee for more than a decade and am currently the chair of the Committee. I am also a Washington University Professor who brings to the Club a dedication to environmentalist ideals, a scientist's measured analysis of issues and, most importantly, an abiding commitment to an effective results-oriented Club that lets no one forget that we did not stand by and watch.
As a hiker with a reverence for nature, I have an obligation to Missouri's forests and to our wild and special places. As a citizen, I have been a long-time activist in support of numerous progressive causes. And as a parent, I can do nothing less than fight for the planet I will one day leave behind.
Sarah Staebell
Being a new kid on the Sierra Club block, I've been inspired by the chapter's rich past, present, and future. Looking for ways to get involved in my hometown, I knew the Sierra Club would be a perfect fit. It's the perfect balance of policy work, hands-on grassroots action, and enjoying the great outdoors. Outside of the Sierra Club, I work for the Saint Louis County Health Department in Waste Management. Starting in public outreach, I created educational materials and ran the website/social media pages. I am now an Environmental Specialist in charge of running our grant program and our two Household Hazardous Waste facilities. I also work for the non-profit St. Louis Earth Day as a Recycling on the Go Ambassador collecting trash, recycling, and compost at outdoor events. Last year St. Louis Earth Day created a Young Friends group, where I held the Vice President position. Yoga and running in Lafayette Park (my favorite park!) get my head out of the trash cans and outside to enjoy the city. My experience and passion all come back to wanting to make Missouri a better place to live. We have a lot of work to do, which is why I want to dive in head first and join the Executive Committee to give a fresh perspective on where we can take the chapter. I am honored to have the opportunity to represent Sierra Club members!
Caitlin Zera
I have been passionate about environmental issues my whole life, and I have truly appreciated the opportunity to become more involved in local and national environmental issues through the Sierra Club.
I have served on the Eastern Missouri Group Executive Committee for the past two years and have worked on numerous Sierra Club initiatives, including the Club's recent efforts to video document the route of the proposed Arcadia Pipeline in the Bell Mountain Wilderness Area. I also serve on the Missouri Chapter Executive Committee and the Equity Team.
I currently work part-time for the Missouri Coalition for the Environment as the Education & Outreach Coordinator and part-time for the Open Space Council helping manage the office and implement community programs. I graduated from Webster University in 2014 with a bachelor's degree in Documentary Film Production and a minor in Environmental Sustainability studies. While at Webster, I was the student co-chair of the Sustainability Coalition and worked in the Facilities Operations Department to coordinate campus-wide sustainability programs and events.
I would love the opportunity to serve another term on the Executive Committee and further connect with Sierra Club members and supporters to work as a team to create real, lasting change in our community. I would be especially eager to continue working on the intersectionality of environmental and equity concerns, and I look forward to expanding my role on the Equity Team. I believe environmental justice education is integral to the success of environmental advocacy and activism in our region and beyond.
As a member of the Executive Committee, I would look forward to empowering local constituencies, engaging members in Sierra Club programs to improve the environmental health of our region for all community members, and participating in initiatives to protect our ecosystems, our public health, and our public lands.