Diane Li, a senior at Georgetown University, is preparing to graduate as part of the first group to complete the university’s Environment and Sustainability undergraduate degree, according to an April 28 announcement. Li shared that her academic path changed after participating in an experiential learning course in Mexico during the summer following her first year.
The new interdisciplinary program is a collaboration between the Earth Commons and the College of Arts & Sciences. It aims to give students hands-on experience by combining environmental science with policy, culture, and justice studies. For Li, who grew up in Montgomery County, Maryland, attending Georgetown was an opportunity to meet people from diverse backgrounds and gain new perspectives.
Li said that her time in Mexico exposed her to different ways of thinking about ecology and sustainability. She completed a project on community-based ecotourism during the two-week course. After learning about the newly launched major while abroad, she decided to switch her academic focus from sociology.
Her parents immigrated to the United States from low-income families so she could pursue educational opportunities. “Growing up with parents who did not have the luxury to choose what they could study, I feel like that is what this major stood for and what made me really excited,” Li said.
Throughout her studies at Georgetown, Li explored interests ranging from environmental conservation to museum science. She interned at institutions such as the Natural History Museum of Crete in Greece—where she researched small-mammal populations—and spent a semester abroad at Waseda University in Tokyo. There she connected with local students whose family members shared ties with hers back home.
Li’s capstone project investigates how flower arranging practices influence people’s perceptions of nature: “If that changes the way we think about flowers, how does it change the way we think about nature? Does it build a deeper connection? Can we be more sustainable if we feel connected?” she said.
During her final year living at Georgetown’s Capitol Campus downtown, Li interned with DPR Communal Farms through DC’s Department of Parks and Recreation—a credit-bearing requirement for her major—and worked closely with other students thanks to small class sizes. She credited mentorship programs between undergraduates and graduate students for enhancing her experience.
Reflecting on what makes this program unique for her personal growth and perspective on sustainability issues going forward, Li recalled advice from Professor Randall Amster: “This question of how to be well in an unwell world innately ties with sustainability…this major gives me a chance…to just take a breath and have a different way of viewing the world.”
