PLAN ASSIGNMENT
A complex problem that I connect with on a personal level is sustainability. I grew up on seven acres of land, and spent most of my young life exploring it. Some of my fondest memories would be following my dog through the underbrush, climbing trees, and weeding my strawberry patch. My father raised me on the idea that exposure is the best medicine, and that the natural world is the cleanest, the purest. So, any threat to this natural world, to me, is a huge problem, not only personally, but on a larger scale – we only have one Earth, and it is crucial that we sustain it.
The first opportunity available to me to address this problem is participating with the organization Clean Up Cinci. I participated with this club previously, at their campus wide service day in October. However, in this upcoming year, I would love to get more involved with this program. After meeting and interviewing Daniel Hart, and seeing his passion for the program and the ways in which it not only gets the campus community involved with sustainability but encourages it outside of that community, is something inspiring and something I want to be a part of. When I originally signed up for the program, I noticed that there were named positions that I could apply for, instead of just being a generic volunteer. I didn’t apply however because I didn’t think I would be a good enough candidate because I was a freshman. But next year as a sophomore, I will step out of my comfort zone and apply for the position, having a year of experience behind me. The second opportunity that I would create would be in my home college of DAAP. One of the main values I hope to implement in my future work as an architect is sustainability – using green materials, and working with the environment instead of destroying it. Next year, I will be embarking on my first co-op. While searching for this co-op, I will look for companies that have sustainability as one of their core values. Through this co-op experience, I will learn tangible ways to apply sustainability in my future designs. This is a goal of mine for the next year. With the co-op opportunity given to me, I will educate myself more about idea of sustainability while actively participating it. Both of these opportunities are related to leadership – being a leader of sustainability in my campus community, and a leader in the workplace. Through this, I will become a stronger and more confident leader.
The first strength that may show up in these two opportunities is communication. In order to be an effective leader in Clean Up Cinci, communication is key. I need to be able to effectively articulate my ideas and plans for the organization, as well as talk to other leaders in the group to collaborate. The same is true for co-oping. In order to make sustainability a bigger part of the company, I need to be able to speak to my superiors and stand behind it. Since I was raised in an Italian household, speaking and speaking well is the norm. However, being in college, I have been involved in much more professional setting than I’m used to. A conversation I have with my family and friends is very different than one I have in the workplace. Therefore, being in these situations will help me to develop a more mature communication style.
The second strength present with these opportunities is belief. As I explained in the first paragraph, sustainability is very important to me, and I am very stubborn it that belief. However, in co-op, since I will be among the lower ranks, it may be difficult for me to get my ideas for sustainability across. There may be times where the company decides to prioritize other things. While I cannot run the company, it is important that I don’t let their priorities change mine. Through pressure and differing opinions, hopefully my strength of belief will become stronger. This struggle will most certainly not be present with Clean Up Cinci, in fact the opposite will occur. All the people I will come in contact with as I participate in this organization will have the same beliefs as me when it comes to sustainability. Together, we will continue to strengthen our passion and belief for it.
A specific lesson from this course that I will use to address this problem is sticking to your strengths. All my life, I’ve heard from others that I need to work on my short-comings, but in Honors we learned that it’s more effective to improve things you are already good at, and to work with others whose strengths are where you fall short. A big aspect of sustainability is looking to the future, seeing what isn’t there – very easy for those with the futuristic strength. This is not something I possess; therefore, it is crucial that I work with those who are. To spread my belief in sustainability, I must focus on developing my strengths, work with others, and step out of my comfort zone – I cannot wait to get started.