Diversifying the Outdoor & Conservation Sector

Master's degree in Political Science & Environment and Natural Resources.... the hardest part...

(1) Finding out the system sees me as a POC aka "person of color"

(2) Having no one to relate to or understand where I was coming from (first generation, female, Vietnamese-American, lower middle income family coming from the ghettos of New Orleans)

(3) Being violently "woken" up from my naive, unaware, complacent spell by a self-righteous intersectional feminist

I applied for a graduate assistantship (GA) with the political science (pols) department, but didn't qualify because my GPA was a 3.3 from undergrad. BUT one of my professors knew how hard I worked, love the environment, and the environment and natural resources (ENR) department needed a GA. She passed my name along and the academic director from ENR called me for an interview.

BACK STORY: I broke up with my boyfriend, quit my 50k+ waitressing job, and found a studio apartment in Laramie, Wyoming to start my master's degree all within 2 weeks. 

It was all sudden and exhilarating. When I moved, I had literally no idea how I was going to pay for grad school. I was just going to suck it up and take out more student loans. 

BUT I serendipitously got a phone call from the ENR department to interview for a GA position. The interview was super informal. Doug Wachob told me it would be a very informal interview. I was probably in his office for less than 10 minutes and he was like you're the right person for this position. Outgoing, upbeat, and fit all the qualifications. (more on that in a minute)

Getting a GA ship would relieve a tremendous amount of financial burden off me and my family's shoulders. I was beaming with gratitude and screaming in utter disbelief that the universe was granting every wish I asked for.

Studio apartment near campus, financial relief, combining my love for policy and environment, and the comforts of a familiar college campus. 

After the interview, I got the packet of all the details about my graduate assistantship.

the title: Graduate Assistantship for Underrepresented Domestic Minorities (UDRM) 

They didnt even try to get creative with it. 

Naively, I was like hell yeah! This scholarship was literally made for me. I didnt care about what it was called. I was just happy they're paying for school and giving me a 1k above the poverty level stipend.

But as time went on... I had a Kylie Jenner year aka I started realizing stuff. 

(1) UDRM - I started to feel like I was not smart enough to be in graduate school, but Asian enough. Feelings of tokenizing and a check box for affirmative action type of feels.  

(2) I was the only Vietnamese person in both Political Science and Environment departments. There was no other POC professor on campus that could relate to my experiences.

(3) I didnt own any Patagucci, REI, Columbia, Northface, etc. clothing. I did not wear the outdoor industry uniform that majority of the students and faculty wore in the ENR department

While all navigating this on my own, because no one in my family, even extended family, has a master's degree.  

Per usual, I figured it out. 

Second year of grad school wasn't as bad because I started to take responsibility for my feelings and took initiative to make some changes for future students. 

(1) Collaborated with the ENR department in the creation of an in house diversity committee 

(2) Attended the SHIFT, where conservation meets adventure, conference’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion workshop.

(3) Organized a similar Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion workshop for faculty, staff, and students @ UWYO

(4) Attended meetings for the new ENR Dean position about their plans for a more inclusive space in ENR for students.

(5) Fundraised a sponsored trip to the People of the Global Majority conference (PGMONE) where I was surrounded in a space where I did not have to explain my Asian existence. 

After that DEI workshop, I found my community. Wyoming was a blessing because being tough in Wyoming doesn't mean rugged. It means doing what you can with what you got. 

Without the struggles, I would not be so passionate and determined about conservation and social justice. 

I made my first Patagonia aka patagucci purchase. It was at a thrift store in Jackson, WY. My friend found a messenger bag I wanted for $10. Now I know why this company is what is it. The bag has been through a life with a pervious owner. Now it's been traveling southeast Asia and holding on strong. From beaches in Indonesia and Viet Nam to airplane rides in Singapore, Denver, Houston, and more. I always think about hand stitching 'thrifted' so that if another person like myself sees it. they will KNOW that they too can achieve anything. And in this case, faking it until you make it. 

Link to PGMONE - Their mission:PGM ONE convenes emerging and established professionals of the global majority who work in the environmental and outdoor movement to share, learn, collaborate, heal, celebrate, build community, find support, and sharpen their analysis of racial equity in their field.