My Major - Environmental Science

I am currently majoring in Environmental Science and minoring in Viola performance.  In the simplest of terms I would love to try to save the planet someday.  Of course, that can't happen tomorrow, but eventually my career will be finding that perfect balance of society and our planet co-existing.  I  don't exactly know where I will be after college but I have the general idea I will be studying natural resources, energy, sustainability, or whatever else I can come up with.

What will I learn?

Environmental Science is a very broad major that covers the interaction between both the environment and society.  Hopefully, by the end of my time here, I will have a solid background on the Earth's natural resources, it's pollution, the many natural processes, and study the physical, biological, and chemical properties of our resources and how we use them, on macro and micro level.  The major itself also has several sub-plans within Environmental Science, eventually, I will have to choose between a focus in Biology, Land, Air, and Water, Society and the Environment, and Physics and Chemistry.  At this moment, I do not have an inkling of what career or branch of Environmental Science I would like to pursue.  Luckily, the format of the major is also very comprehensive in providing a solid background in all of those branches and a specific class designed for the purpose of helping student's find their future career options well before I have to choose a sub-plan.  I have many months of possible internships, various wildlife, plant, and sustainability clubs and opportunities, and a significant amount of lab and environmental law studying to work through before I absolutely have to nail down my future.

Career Field

The variability in the job field for my major vast and covers a variety of organizations, political, scientific, and educational.  Many of the careers also may not be directly related to my major, I could follow the path of engineering or biology just as easily as sustainability or natural resources.  There is an extensive job market in the government at the federal, state, and local level for various specializations of my major, regarding sustainability, health, development, enforcement, research, and analysis.  The job market for environmental science can only grow as the conversation of pollution and climate change gains ground and awareness in society and politics.  I can see myself heading down either the government or solely scientific research and activism categories.  Education of the public of the current long-term environmental problems on an international scale is absolutely crucial, but I feel I may be able to make more of that long-term impact from a management or scientific position.

Why did I choose Environmental Science?

I spent many years debating between music and science for my career path.  It came down to whether I wanted to spend my life in job I loved attached to a very competitive job sphere with few rewards and little pay or a career with a more intuitive attachment to activism, research, and creating long-term change.  I love viola, and I will continue to be a musician all of my life, but I love perhaps even more, the idea that I can spend my life working to effect the planet on a political, scientific, and social level.  I may not create an internationally recognized plan to solve global warming, but the purpose behind environmental is beautifully clear; to protect the earth by creating more sustainable and efficient systems.  Music has a deep emotional connection to me, but it's purpose in the career field is less defined and even less so in terms of actual jobs.  I did not want to turn music into the method I depending on for food and water.  I would much rather have a stable job that would allow me to work for sustainability and live sustainably.

Theilmann, Mira Photo taken at the UBC Museum of Anthropology
in Vancouver, Canada, July 2015

Leaders in sustainability

When looking at sustainable efforts in the industrial sphere, the eco-friendly standards are often limited on the small scale, examples being small organic farms and businesses compared to larger scale corporations like Microsoft.  Unilever has been the standout large scale company to actively apply sustainability to every aspect of their marketing and business.  They have launched programs on deforestation, a comprehensive hygiene program in Africa, and an active reduction of waste and improvement in efficiency in their manufacturing.  Their research and comprehensive implementation of sustainable production is unmatched in large industrial scale companies.  They disprove the idea that quantity of the product trumps quality of manufacturing, distribution, and waste management.  Their model of infrastructure, production, and outreach programs is instrumental in the development of environmental processes in the business world.

The Peace Corp has been known for their outreach, activism, and sustainability for countless years.  They perfectly establish the importance of understanding reality, addressing the problem, and community involvement.  Environmental science implementation depends on funding and support.  Climate change, health of the environment, and a co-existing relationship between the people and the planet cannot exist without support from the government and the people.  The Peace Corp melds volunteerism, research, and activism into a household name organization around the world.  The continually growing and ever hardworking organization easily establishes their place as a leader in sustainability.

Elon Musk is perhaps one of the greatest minds of the current day, and one of the most highly ambitious investors in sustainable energy and efficiency.  Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity, and even PayPal are only a few of his brainchilds, all of which are massively successful and one of the first of their kind at the time of their creation.  His groundbreaking work started the first massively successful and marketable electric car and the largest solar power provider in the US.  Now every child and every adult dreams of being able to own a Tesla.  That is a definite step towards support future of even more efficient and eco-friendly society and planet.  He has taken on the energy storage, solar energy, space-exploration, and high-speed efficient transportation all at once.  I don't think I could find another equally successful living embodiment of someone who wanted to change the world in as many facets as possible.  I don't believe I will ever become the billionaire he is, nor do I want to, but his success in forming so many companies with the capability of solving multiple international energy and sustainability problems is inspiring.

Leading academic journals

- Environmental Science & Technology published in ACS Publications

- Science of the Total Environment published by Elsevier

- Chemosphere published by ScienceDirect