Belén Rodríguez

Hello! My name is Belén Rodríguez and I was part of the 2017 cohort of the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program at University of Washington. I graduated in 2019 from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut with a double major in Science in Society (history/philosophy/sociocultural studies of science) and Environmental Studies with a minor in Data Analysis. At Wesleyan, I received Honors for my Science in Society senior thesis wherein I dissected the discourses of contamination, wildlife, and Indigeneity at military base-to-wildlife refuge conversions in New England.

As part of the DDCSP@UW program, I gained experience with natural resource management and food sovereignty at the Skagit River System Cooperative in Burlington, Washington. I propagated, cultivated, and inventoried ethnobotanical plants for the Swinomish Tribal Community and designed food sovereignty-based restoration plans for two salmon habitat restoration sites along the Skagit River. Additionally, I gained experience in social marketing strategies, program development, and event planning as part of the Eco-Facilitator program at Wesleyan's Sustainability Office. As an Eco-Facilitator and Eco-Facilitator Coordinator, I functioned as a peer-to-peer sustainability educator and assisted with the development, implementation, and evaluation of Eco-Facilitator projects that engaged first-year dorms and the larger campus community. I also led discussions about social justice as it pertained to environmentalism and the future of the program.

In August 2019, I begin my position as a Building Science Fellow at the Center for EcoTechnology in Northampton, Massachusetts. As a Building Science Fellow, I will administer energy efficiency programs for the region, conduct data management, assist high performance building teams at on-site visits for LEED certified and Passive House buildings, and develop marketing content.

In the future, I aspire to dive deeper into the fields of urban/regional planning, landscape architecture, green buildings, and natural resource management. As I explore these fields and my professional interests in the coming years, I want to keep the principles of equity and justice central to my work. I hope to build a more just and sustainable future with the DDCSP network and others who are committed to social justice issues as they pertain to communities and environments of color.