Faith, Deidranee, and Jessi are three teenagers from Silver City, NM who love the environment and are determined to make their community healthier. They have been working with the NM-INSPIRES Community
Engagement Core (CEC) in collaboration with the Gila Resources Information Project (GRIP) as interns since February 2024. They heard about this internship opportunity from their local high school, Aldo Leopold Charter School.
They were initially brought onto this project to share their unique viewpoint. As the NMINSPIRES CEC, we believe that it is one of the best ways that we can gain youth insight and engage younger generations. As part of the internship, they learn about and create environmental health-related communication materials, while also gaining hands-on experience in air monitoring and installation of air quality sensors. In the same regard, I spoke with Jessi and Faith to learn what they’ve gained from participating in this project:
Jessi: “I think aside from scientific stuff such as the particulate matter, my soft skills and communication abilities have been improved.”
Faith also added the importance lesson of doing a teamwork: “Each three of us like different aspect of it, but I think in the end we all ended up just doing everything together and contributed to every single thing.”
How do you think this project will benefit the community of Silver City?
Faith: “I care a lot about our community. I think we have a very nice and welcoming community in the Silver City. I want to do everything I can to protect it. Because they are always there for us. For example, they support every local youth theater. Everyone is genuinely willing to donate time and effort about causes and this is what makes our community so unique.”
Jessi: “We are also a very environmentally friendly community. People here love outdoor activities. So, I'm pretty sure that if we could convey the information correctly, they are willing to get involve.”
What were your initial expectations when you started this project, and how have they evolved?
Faith: “Since I haven’t worked anywhere similar to here before, I thought everything in these organizations are so strict, structured and on schedule. However, the more I was getting into this, the more I understand how some of real-world job would work. There might be so many challenges on your way. Things get delayed. Something may happen that is out of your control. I think not only it is not a bad thing, but also, we are learning how to adapt quickly.”
Jessi: “This less-structured environment let us to create by experiencing somethings, maybe for the first time, from the scratch. While sometimes it got challenging, it was fun to overcome and solve the problem. Also, we initially thought this internship were going to be in the field works like installing sensors.
While we have been involved in those practical experiences, we learn so much stuff such as community outreach and communication strategies too.”
Can you share any memorable experiences or discoveries you've had while working on the project?
Faith: “For me one of the memorable moments is actually before the start day of internship. It was a busy Sunday in our city’s local café and there were so many people there for the open-mic event. I was working on some stuff on my laptop and there was this guy sitting next to me. He gets up to go do something and he's like, are you gonna watch my computer for me? Accidentally, I saw the air quality sensor map on his laptop. When he came back, I told him that I had applied for the internship, and we get to talk. So, I met Roger, who is
working on the project, a month before I got the internship!”
Jessi: “I would say one of my like favorite experiences also involves Roger! It was the day when we were setting up all 10 sensors. We had to get them to connect them to WIFI for the purple air data, so that they can transfer data to the Purple Air website. Since it was something that neither of us had done before, we were sitting with his laptop open and took like two hours to just get the one sensor connected. Every five minutes he’d be like: if we get this one done, we're just going to get coffee and life is too short to have a bad coffee! Eventually, when we figured out the first one and we got up and we danced around. Of course, we had a pleasant coffee celebration!”
They both mention that working together has been really fun for them. The trio finds working on projects and brainstorming ideas together to be so effortless, it’s almost like hanging out! Also, they seemed really happy with the fact that every paper for this project was slightly pink!
What advice would you give to other high school students interested in getting involved in similar projects?
Faith: “I would say go for what you are passionate for. Don’t be afraid of applying for internships.” Jessi: “We were very lucky to find this internship. However, if you couldn’t find the similar project or didn’t get an internship, don’t be discouraged. I am sure there are specific places related to your interests in your town.
I know many of our friends found this internship so cool, yet they never applied. Go and just get involved! I think one of the hard things for my generation, especially after Covid-19, is the anxiety we experience to do simple daily communication such as calling somewhere to order food!”
Faith: “Yes, I agree. No one is going to discover you until you put yourself out there. Even if the is offered to you, you still need to be able to tell them about yourself and why you're interested.”
If you were capable of one big change with all the resources in New Mexico, what would that be? What would be next step for you?
Faith: “There are many things around that needs to be better. For example, I think that conservation in New Mexico is a really big thing. We are one of the largest states with the greatest number of rural lands. Silver City is right next to the Gila National Forest. Growing up here, we've always been taught that the wilderness in nature is something that you can go to find calmness and escape from like day-to-day life. So, it is very important to preserve what nature has already given us.”
Jessi: Considering water is a big thing and very scarce here in New Mexico, I think water conservation in general. It would be great if we could observe our water resources like rivers quality, similar to how we monitor air quality.