Say hello to our summer interns: Hi, Carmen!
We love summer for so many reasons. It’s that perfect in-between time of year when seeds planted in the spring blossom, bloom and grow strong, and we still have the warm gatherings of fall to look forward to. One of the most exciting things about this summer as been the launch of the 2019 Indonesia Women’s Earth Alliance Accelerator, and the opportunity to welcome Carmen Lopez to our Programs + Operations team!
Name: Carmen Lopez
Role at WEA: Program + Operations Intern
Hometown: Castro Valley, CA
Fun Fact: I have been to six continents. My mom likes to travel and I’m lucky enough to be able to tag along.
Why did you want to intern with WEA? I wanted to intern at WEA because I’m passionate about the bridge between women and environment. I believe that caring for the environment begins with supporting women. When I first heard about WEA I was so excited to learn about an organization with values that aligned so closely with mine. I also potentially want to work for a nonprofit in the future so I thought that there was no better way to do that than to work for WEA and learn firsthand.
What’s your go-to strategy for lessening your environmental/climate footprint? My go to strategy is eating less meat and also educating myself about social issues in order to make better informed decisions, whether it is about government or the food I eat. I’ve managed to cut red meat almost entirely out of my diet and I’m working on becoming completely vegetarian. I think it’s important to educate oneself about social issues because many of these issues are connected to environmentalism in some way and I believe that trying to understand those connections better makes it easier to understand how to help the environment.
Tell us about a woman who inspires you. A woman that inspires is my grandmother. She was raised in Oklahoma and didn’t have access to running water or electricity because her family lived in poverty as well as much of the surrounding community. She got a full ride scholarship to Stanford Law School and was one of three woman in her graduating class along with Sandra Day O’Connor. She inspires me because even though she came from difficult circumstances, but was able to overcome to barriers she faced and received an education from a renowned school.
What’s your favorite thing to do in the Bay Area? My favorite thing to do is go for walks at Lake Chabot or hike among the redwoods on Skyline. Lake Chabot has been a long time favorite of mine, but I learned about the redwoods up on Skyline only a few years ago. I like to go up there to escape the urban jungle and be surrounded by the beautiful trees.
Any community events coming up you’re excited about (bonus points if it’s women-led/organized)? I’m not sure if this counts as a community event, but I’m really excited for Flower Piano. It’s an event where live music is played in the botanical gardens in the night time.
What are you currently reading / watching / listening to? I watched the entire third season of Stranger Things in about two days and almost cried in the airport from the ending. I’m currently reading Can We All Be Feminists? Which consists of several essays written about the concept of feminism and how it should be applied in modern times. I find it interesting because it begins a discussion about the lack of intersectionality there has been and is in feminist ideology. I’m also listening to a singer named Lianne La Havas. I don’t typically like love songs, but one of my favorite of hers is “What you Don’t Do.”