Written by: Leah Bahramipour
Artwork by: Yanis Caillaud
It was 9:30AM on my second day of freshman year. I sat in a small classroom for an environmental science course I had taken to fulfill a requirement. At the front of the class, a soft-spoken woman started to teach — Professor Eugenia Naro-Maciel (she/her/hers). I was anxious, a freshman in college nearly 3,000 miles away from home. There was something, however, about the way Professor Naro-Maciel taught that intrigued me. You could tell she loved the material, and that she wanted every student to succeed.
Teaching environmental science is not where Professor Naro-Maciel had always imagined herself. Growing up, she considered pursuing a degree in Russian, or attending medical school. However, between her sophomore and junior year of college, Professor Naro-Maciel took a year off from her studies to live in Brazil and work with Projeto TAMAR, also known as the Brazilian Sea Turtle Conservation Program. The organization had started working with small fishing villages in northern Brazil to learn why sea turtle populations were collapsing. As part of this initiative, they realized the communities in these areas were harvesting sea turtles and their eggs for food. The organization created programs to save the turtles while also catering to the communities’ needs. Projeto TAMAR hired former poachers to protect sea turtles, created educational programs for children, and helped shape a national and international tourism sector around these animals. The organization fostered a newfound appreciation for sea turtles — sea turtles were even voted to be featured on Brazilian currency! Professor Naro-Maciel was inspired by the program, the turtles, and the communities she worked with. As a result of this experience, she realized she wanted to build a career around conservation efforts.
After graduating from college, she returned to Brazil as a Fulbright Scholar to conduct research on sea turtles. She ultimately pursued a Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology from Columbia, which she accomplished while raising her daughters! It is hard to comprehend the strength and determination needed for an accomplishment like this. Although at one point in her Ph.D. education she wanted to quit, she says having the support of her mentors and family was critical to her success.
Professor Naro-Maciel always knew she wanted to make a difference, so after finishing her doctoral degree, she began working on the frontlines of conservation efforts with non-governmental organizations. She worked at the American Natural History Museum on conservation education and research, including studies to assist the Brazilian Sea Turtle Conservation Program. After working at the museum for five years, one of her mentors told her that she needed to get a job that did not depend on fundraising. She knew she loved learning and that teaching would make a meaningful difference. Although her career has not been a straight path, it ultimately led her to her current position as a professor in Liberal Studies at New York University.
While at NYU, she helped create the Sustainability, Health and Environment concentration in the Global Liberal Studies major. The new concentration evolved out of a discussion with fellow Liberal Studies professor Emily Bauman, and as a result of Professor Naro-Maciel’s dedication and passion the new concentration was formed in just six months. There was unanimous support from the faculty and administration for the new concentration, and Professor Naro-Maciel was elected to be its first chair. Professor Naro-Maciel hopes that the concentration will help develop a generation of leaders that will combat environmental degradation.
Professor Naro-Maciel believes that individuals can make a difference, and that individual actions can add up to create positive changes for the environment. I am proof that Professor Naro-Maciel’s individual decision to pursue environmental issues and teach them to others has already had a meaningful impact. Professor Naro-Maciel’s 9:30 class changed the way I think about and interact with the environment. Her class introduced me to environmental science, and, nearly three years after my first day, I am pursuing a second major in environmental studies. She taught me that all of us can play a role in protecting the environment, because we are not apart from nature, but a part of nature. She explained how social justice issues are inextricably linked to environmental issues, so to protect the Earth means to fight for justice. There is nothing more precious than the environment that gives us life and the more I learned, the more I realized I can not sit by idly while the Earth is destroyed.
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