Blog

Houston, Texas may not conjure up images of clean energy, but there are rising stars emerging from the steamy streets of the big city. Jennifer Amelang, a senior at University of St. Thomas, has been connecting people all around Houston to work on clean energy as a 2010-2011 & 2011-2012 Focus Coordinator as well as a 2011 ReCharge! Delegate. Read on to hear from Jennifer about her experience moving forward from ReCharge 2011.

  

As a 2011 Recharge! Retreat Delegate, with the guidance and help of Stephanie Pollack and Enrique Salmon, the retreat facilitators, I came to acknowledge the importance of saying “yes.” One sunny day on the south side of Mt. Hood, all twenty delegates stood in a circle. Stephanie encouraged us to yell out commands. In response, the group would reply with “YES!” while performing the task. “Whip your hair back and forth”…”YES!” *whipping our hair back and forth* The activity was fun, and saying yes is fun, but more importantly, I found that it was essential for me to let go of my insecurities and inhibitions and accept this affirmative philosophy. This exercise is especially true for educational experiences outside of the classroom, such as the retreat itself. Service-learning, hands-on experience, community activism- call it what you want; it’s authentic learning and has helped me to appreciate the words I might read on the pages of a textbook.

 

Returning home and returning to school, with the occasional exception of daydreaming of sunny faces and sunny places, I was amazed how easy it was getting back into my routine. However, I tried to periodically reflect on the experiences I shared. This semester I have continued to try to say “yes” and continued making connections in my local environmental community. I am a second year Focus Organizer with FTN, and I recently became an intern with the Council for Environmental Education. Within my school and community, I am attempting to engage various quadrants of students and faculty. I have teamed up with a politico and fellow student to put on an Environmental Week in conjunction with the FTN Forum. Also, I have contacted Technicians and Innovators from my school’s American Chemical Society (ACS) to present their biofuels research. To bridge the gap between Houston-based Universities, I have invited professors to speak from various schools. So far I have confirmations from two major universities in the area: Rice University and the University of Houston.

 

Throughout the semester I have come back to one memory and feeling. On the last day of the Retreat, in a moment of emotional catharsis, I realized and told the group, “I’m still such a baby.” We are all babies. We, perpetually, have the potential to grow, and saying yes to constructive experiences is one facet to building a successful and fulfilled life.