Ellen '99
My senior Comp was focused on voluntary simplicity. Most ‘simple living’ literature was targeted at older people who had already reached a certain point in their lives and decided to make changes toward a simpler way of living. My research looked at whether college students could meaningfully engage in this type of consideration in a proactive, rather than reactive, manner. I have great memories of sitting around my off-campus living room with a small group of other ES students discussing what a simple life might look like for us. Twenty-four years later, I think it was a useful exercise at a really formative time in my life. The simplicity circle was some of the most fun research I’ve ever conducted!
After Allegheny, I learned about landscape architecture while serving as an AmeriCorps volunteer in Appalachia. A few years later, I returned to graduate school to get a master’s degree in landscape architecture. It is a really great fit for me, since it combines sustainability and ecology with urban revitalization and public space design. Landscape architecture is probably the least well-known profession that is doing a great deal to address climate change, through forward-thinking design and maintenance of physical spaces.
Ellen studied environmental science and art at Allegheny College.
