Meet our April Undergraduate of the Month, Carmen Dodl! Carmen is a senior Geographical Sciences major. 

What are your interests within your program?

My track within the Geographical Sciences major is Environmental Systems and Natural Resources. I am particularly interested in learning about how human activity impacts the effects of natural disasters.

What previous jobs, internships, and volunteer experience have you had?

As an undergraduate, I worked as a docent at the UMD Stamp Gallery for two years. During the summers, I worked as a Circulation Desk Assistant at Randolph-Macon College, where I was taking some classes. 

Where are you/have you been interning?

I am a Green Resources Mapping Intern at The Parks & People Foundation in Baltimore.

What are your internship responsibilities?

My main responsibility is to create a map that shows Parks & People resource distribution throughout the city of Baltimore, using a combination of Google Maps and ArcGIS. This map will serve as a reference for future project planning. Spatially, it will provide insight as to which communities are benefiting from Parks & People programs, and which communities require more attention.

What project(s) are you working on or contributing to?

Parks & People implements various "green" projects that aim to promote community interest in creating and caring for the natural environment. I gather information about previous and current environmental education programs, green infrastructure development, community greening grants, tree plantings, and vacant lot restoration.

How is the internship experience relevant to your studies in Geographical Sciences?

As a student in the Geographical Sciences program, I've taken courses that emphasis both the consequences and benefits human-environmental interaction. These courses taught me that there is often a gap between environmental health awareness and peoples' actual intentions. I think that interning at Parks & People is allowing me a chance to see this gap closing, due to the environmental awareness that their projects produce.

What are your career goals after your graduate?

At the moment, I am still exploring my options, but I would like to become involved in work that deals with some aspect of community planning as it relates to the environment. Emergency Management is a field I am looking into.

What are some of your hobbies?

In my free time, I play guitar and viola. I also enjoy kayaking just being outdoors in general. A new hobby of mine is stepping away from the microwave and trying out my cooking skills.

Where are you from?

I grew up around Richmond, Virginia.

What has been your favorite class at UMD? Why?

I really enjoyed taking Urban Wildlife Management, as a supplemental course to my major program. There are so many nuances involved with creating a sustainable and livable urban green space, and I found that the class really boosted my appreciation of these spaces. We also got to dissect owl pellets, which is much more fun than it sounds.

If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

I would travel to New Zealand. I've always found mountains to be beautiful, and New Zealand has many to showcase.

If you were the ruler of your own country, what would be the first law you would enact?

I would enact a Chocolate Appreciation Day. It would be a federal holiday, and everyone would be entitled to a box of assorted chocolates, delivered free of charge.

That sounds like a pretty great federal holiday idea to us Carmen! Thanks for being such a great representative of the Geography program! Congratulations!