The Abstract
University of Washington Bachelors of Science in Environmental Engineering
& Interdisciplinary Honors Program
The Abstract
University of Washington Bachelors of Science in Environmental Engineering
& Interdisciplinary Honors Program
It all began with Baba O'Riley...
Hi there, my name is Willow Hoins, and I am an Environmental Engineer, an Interdisciplinary Scientist, a Community Member, and a Student. Legacy, Documentation, First Principle Thinking, Voice, Individual Action & Systemic Change, Developing “My kinda Woman”, and Community Engaged Knowledge. Throughout my time at UW, these were the values and frameworks which shaped my experience these past 4 years.
Pillars of Perspective-- for the On-the-Go Enthusiasts
Individual Action with Systemic Change
Individual Action with Systemic Change
Individual Action with Systemic Change
My kind a' Woman
Individual Action with Systemic Change
Individual Action with Systemic Change
Learning Statement
I aim to apply my growing academic interests outside of the classroom through community engaged science and innovation, specifically while examining biogeochemical pathways in the environment using the values and frameworks of legacy, documentation, first principle thinking, voice, developing my kind a woman, individual action & systemic change, and community engaged knowledge. Throughout classes exploring microbial principles, limnology, hydrology, global water management, and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), I have conducted extensive literature reviews, data processing, data analysis, data visualization, mapping, and technical reports into carbon, methane, iron, nitrogen, and ammonia mobilization case studies. Following these cycles and systems is the perfect combination of highly detail oriented work and global scale thinking, and is exactly where I see myself mixing individual action with systemic change– creating and sustaining processes of progress, not singular acts. I’ve sought out ways to approach, narrow down, and engage with these ideals and interests throughout my college career.
In the summer of 2022, leading individual expeditions and observational surveys of the glaciers, ecology, and culture in the Apennine Alps let me take my first steps into how landscapes shape people, and people shape landscapes. I learned ice was memory, then, and learned I wanted to engage with my environment and my degree in more ways than mechanical engineering would offer me. I wanted to research.
After returning from study abroad in Rome, in winter of 2023, I then applied to the college of Environmental Engineering and worked to cultivate a resume of experiences that would offer me the most diverse ways of approaching my growing questions and ideas around nutrient and water cycles.
In summer of 2023 I studied abroad in Bangalore and Ladakh, India, and learned innovation and social, cultural, or economic change on a societal scale with the Ashoka and Naropa Fellows. Working with stakeholders and fellows in every stage of the social entrepreneurship process led me to understand where your voice comes from, and how much more powerful compassion was– how much more enduring it made the ventures that chose to lead with it. There’s some nuance though there, in the balancing of decisions. But while collaborating with fellows in a range from working on their 1st or their 4th entrepreneurship endeavor, the ones capable of creating lasting change had the unique position of coming from compassion– that gave them a drive and a wherewithal to make lasting moves, and do the right thing. I think my favorite example of this is the Digital Empowerment Foundation and their work combatting the presence of FreeBasics in India. My time in India left me with a toolkit of problem approach, process creation, compassion, and interconnection of disciplines, cultures, and questions. It also gave me the opportunity to explore groundwater recharge, glacial melt, and alternative energy from the bottom-up, and meet who I like to refer to as “The World’s Coolest Man,” Vishwanath S (Biome Environmental Trust).
In fall of 2023, I joined the Mountain Hydrology Laboratory on Campus as Outreach Manager and worked to optimize the lab’s website and outreach platforms, manage data, and learn to curate science communication by bridging the structure of hard-coding with creative visual design and technical writing.
Each of these marked experiences gave me tools and a structured workflow to learn my own perspectives on how I wanted to approach studying this world. With each marked experience, comes an unmarked continuous journey, however, with applying my knowledge back into the community that inspired it all. In my next stages of engaging with community incorporated science and innovation at global and niche scales, I hope to pursue work in the research community, and optimally a Ph.D. so that I can not only learn what questions to ask, but how I want to ask them.
Footnotes for understanding "Footloose"- Kenny Loggins
Throughout this honors portfolio, I mark my experience through music.
Moments of My Life Thus Far: "Cosmic Dancer"- T. Rex
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