The Rachel Carson Council Enters Ram Country
Rachel Carson visited her fair share of awe-inspiring mountain ranges. In 1945, along with her good friend and colleague Shirley Briggs, she climbed Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania. Briggs and Carson worked together at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Washington, D.C. In October 1945, Briggs captured the now-iconic photo of Rachel Carson. Yet, as far as we know, Carson never made her way to the northern Rocky Mountains, just a short distance from Fort Collins, Colorado, home to Colorado State University (CSU)
RCC Assistant Director of Campus and Civic Engagement, Diego Tovar, made the trip to CSU, his alma mater, a university that prides itself as a powerhouse in campus sustainability. Rated as a top-tier sustainable campus for an entire decade by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), and ranked as having the best sustainability curriculum in the state of Colorado, the Rams take environmentalism seriously. They are also the first university to earn platinum status four times.
With CSU’s Dr. Mindy Hill, Tovar organized an event with the Colorado State University Environmental Justice Center and also spoke to students in the Warner College of Natural Resources about the importance of maintaining a sense of wonder in climate research, his environmental justice work with Indigenous communities, and how creative writing can serve as a platform for environmental advocacy— as did Rachel Carson’s first book, Under the Sea-Wind, by following and developing empathy for the lives of marine creatures Scomber, the mackerel, and Anguilla, the eel.
Photo: Diego Tovar on the ridges of Horsetooth Reservoir
After a hike around Horsetooth Reservoir—home to Bald Eagles, Red-shouldered Hawks, and American White Pelicans—Tovar returned to campus and met with Dr. Rickey Frierson, Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion, and Nikki Foxley, Academic Success Coordinator. He discussed the legacy and work of the Rachel Carson Council and the various ways students could get involved with the RCC’s National Environmental Leadership Fellowship (NELF) program. Tovar explained to the assembled CSU students and administrators what sorts of environmental projects and campaigns students could pursue and be financially supported and mentored by the RCC.
Following Tovar’s visit, the Rachel Carson Council is proud to announce Colorado State University as the 69th member of the nationwide Rachel Carson Campus Network (RCCN).
