WOW, what a semester it turned out to be! I’ve been unbelievably derelict about posting—in part, I think, because I’ve been overwhelmed by the amount there’s been to say.
My semester interning at the EPA in D.C. flew by, but not before teaching me an enormous amount about the world of politics and policy, about the crucial link between the environment and human health (you know, water quality, air quality, biodiversity & disease, and so on and so forth), about how to be a scientist who advises important policy, and a good deal more.
The last few weeks were particularly …
If you happen to know me, you probably also know that I’m a bit of a public radio geek.
As a child I was soothed by the voice of Bloomington’s own George Walker streaming through my house; I probably admire Terry Gross (Fresh Air), Ira Glass (This American Life), and Jad Abumrad (Radiolab) more than any political figure; and, when I don’t have access to the radio, I depend on podcasts to keep me thinking and inspired.
So when my internship supervisor said we’d be developing some podcasts as communications materials (I’m on EPA’s science communications team), and when it …
So at my internship this past week, I’ve been writing a kids’ article about some awesome EPA research that’s relevant to children’s health. Of course I’ve had way too much fun trying to think like a child. In that playful spirit, I thought we’d play a game this blog—but probably one that’s way less interesting to children (not to claim that it’ll be interesting to you…).
Okay, so we’ve all heard politicians, journalists, etc. report that DC is its own world, distinct from that of America’s “Main Street.” While I won’t go into that debate, I’ve definitely picked up some …
So one thing that is just amazing about D.C. is the number of “important” people you see around.
This morning, for instance, some of the other IU interns saw George Clooney testify about South Sudan at a hearing with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Another was near enough to President Obama and Prime Minister James Cameron that she posted a photo on Facebook.
And I—well, I haven’t met anyone that exciting (although I was supposed to go to the Clooney hearing, my maladaptive sleep habits messed that one up!). But I have been inches away from EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, …
I wrote in my last blog that I wouldn’t talk about “work” this time, but actually—I’m going to. Now that I’ve been at this internship for about a month, I’m starting to recognize the challenges involved.
That sounds odd, doesn’t it? Intuitively, it seems like the first day or first week would be the biggest challenge: everything is unfamiliar and impressions are as yet unmade. Not so. In my mind, at least, that newness is your get-out-of-jail-free card: as long as you’re eager to learn, it’s okay that you don’t do everything perfectly at first.
It’s further down the line, …
Well, the DC adventures continue.
Like last week, for example, when I attended my first congressional hearing. There as a notetaker for my office, I was so enthralled by the event that I sometimes looked down to find my fingers hovering over the keyboard, frozen, rather than hastily typing away. So many dimensions of the hearing were intriguing: the topic itself was one quite relevant to my internship, so I was keen to learn about the issue in more depth. But whom to believe, when either side was reporting something different, sometimes offering few facts to ground those claims?…
Wow, how can I even begin to convey all the excitement of my first few weeks in DC? It’s been such a blast, and I’ve learned so much already.
Although exploring the city and getting to know others in the program has been great, perhaps most exciting was the start of my internship. That was on Tuesday of this past week. I got all dressed up, of course, hopped on the metro like 40 minutes earlier than I probably needed to (but I got off at the wrong metro stop along the way, making that extra time quite useful…), …
This is it: the beginning of my semester living and working in DC! I arrived yesterday morning, and have a week until I start my internship in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Research and Development. Here’s the rundown of my experiences in the city thus far:
Monday, 10:28 a.m. Indianapolis. I just heard a call for “Carlos Townsend” over the airport PA system. Oh wait—nope, they’re trying to pronounce my name. Crap, what’d I lose?
Monday, 10:38 a.m. Okay, post-retrieval of my iPhone from the check-in desk, I’m heading back through security.
…
Oh my gosh, does my purse …
Well, I’m not sure it’s really hit me yet, but it’s true nonetheless: I just finished up my last traditional semester on the IUB campus. I’ll spend all of next semester in D.C., taking a few classes but spending most of my time interning at the Environmental Protection Agency, and, aside from a summer class or two, will then be done with my undergraduate career! It’s crazy.
So at a moment like this it’s natural to look back at college and ask what I’ve gotten from it (warning, this blog’s gonna be a little sappy..) And at first there’s a …
Well, I’m nearing something that looks like it might resemble a document close to a rough form of a completed honors thesis.
And by that I mean: after a long process and a lot of doubt, I finished my first draft, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to turn out too terribly.
You know, given the daily onslaught of e-mails full of cool opportunities that an IU student faces (from advisors, programs they’re in, committees they’re on, lists they’ve signed up for, etc.), I just don’t believe there’s any way to truly make “rational” decisions about which to ultimately …
