Voices – 12/11/2020
Interview by Shravani Page
Page Design by Aadrija Biswas
Preston Meyer – Junior
Tell me about yourself! What kinds of things do you like to do, Hobbies, Fun Facts, Etc.? I’m a junior. I’ve always had a big passion for the environment and just nature in general. I grew up in a remote part of Mason and was used to seeing nature everywhere. Over time, I started noticing a huge industrial change. More businesses and homes were being created. It’s good, but it’s sad seeing change and seeing all these animals and wildlife disappear. So I created the Ecology club for that reason I wanted people to be able to connect through nature, their positive learning experiences. And I think it’s going really well.
What do you hope to do through spreading the word and informing others about these topics? Currently we are just going out in Pine Hill and just bringing as many people as possible. We are clearing out invasive species that are threatening to our wildlife. We are building trails for people to be able to walk in and enjoy nature, and just feeding birds and animals and just incorporating humans with nature. I feel that humans feel that we’re somewhat superior and we don’t need to be interacting with animals. There’s this huge gap between being educated towards understanding what’s going on in wildlife and seeing it disappear. We’re so consumed in our digital world that we’re not noticing what’s happening in our natural world.
What is the goal of the ecology club? Our goal is to be physically and spiritually involved with nature and learn how to protect the natural environment and its wildlife. We work to develop and enhance our mental and physical skills in an effort to lessen our negative impact on the environment.
What are some activities you participate/hope to participate in? Activities like growing gardens, planting native trees, making birdhouses and nesting boxes, building wildlife habitats, creating compost, providing resources for environmental education, encouraging community cleanups, and volunteering are a few examples of what we do here in the club.
How does you identity and the things you support play a role in the way you view the world? It’s my way of life completely. Me starting the ecology club was part of me just putting myself out there and trying to meet people who have similar views as me. It’s a great way to connect with people.
What would you like to see change or improve within the world we live in? That is, what do you want to change by advocating for the topics you’re speaking out on? I want to see more change towards environmental policies or incorporating nature with politics or just a way of life just being able to like, accept and love and cherish what the planet has given us.
If there’s one thing you want people to take away from reading this, what would it be? We should be able to bring back our connection to nature and be able to live life with the environment, learn how to treat it fairly, and learn how to benefit the environment as well as benefit yourself. People see activism as maybe like this radical change or something different, and almost on or off, but I think it’s a good thing. I think more people should be aware, not necessarily always support, but just aware and accepting.