November 13, 2022
As a little girl, I was immersed in the world of agriculture. Working and living on my family’s farm in Poland each summer gave me real insight into what it takes to harvest and plant crops. With hard labor and ideal conditions, any vegetation can thrive, but climate change threatens the prosperity of nature and consequently, humanity.
In my most recent experiences in Poland, it was disheartening to see the evidence of drought as a result of climate change. When I was a child, some of my best memories were playing in a treehouse that my cousins and I built. We chose a tree in the pasture that had a stream running below. In the past four years, the stream has completely dried up and all that is left is cracked and unsaturated soil. The impacts of drought go beyond aesthetic value: environmental degradation has serious impacts on people who rely on the land for their livelihood, and those who rely on agriculture for food, therefore, everyone. There are countless droughts across the world caused by climate change and the mismanagement of water resources. Witnessing the severe decrease in the quantity and quality of food and water in Poland inspired my passion for environmental studies.
As an earth and environmental science major with a global engagement minor, the impacts of climate change on environmental and social development is fascinating to me. In my time abroad, I will concern myself with the environmental issues that a community is suffering from. Through my intercultural experiences, I hope to collaborate with a locals and local environmental protection agency in order to further investigate the manifestations of climate change and the effects on communities.
