Education and Such...

My name is Meghan Martin and I am an IDS major with a concentration in Sustainable Development and a minor in Appropriate Technology. I am graduating in May which means I somehow fell within the four year time frame. I came to college with no idea of what I wanted to do and actually started off taking quite a few business classes; however, I quickly realized that they didn’t exactly coincide with my way of thinking. After that I explored geology but wasn’t ready to devote that much time to rocks. This was when I found my way to sustainable development and the Interdisciplinary Studies program. My main interests lately have been in my appropriate tech minor which has meshed really well with my concentration in SD. I have taken some really interesting classes such as sustainable building design and construction as well as solar thermal energy where I had the opportunity to design and build a solar hot water system.

Much of my education has taken place outside the academia. I have had a variety of jobs and volunteer experience over the years. The most recent of which is my position as a supervisor at a candy store in Blowing Rock. I must say that I have learned a lot there, mostly how not to run a business and the importance of the words “thank you” which seem to be largely forgotten in our society. A few years ago, I also had the opportunity to travel and work on organic farms in Alaska and Oregon through an organization called WWOOF. This was an amazing experience in all senses. The people that I lived and worked with during that time showed me that it really is possible to live your dreams and be successful following an “alternative” path.

I am not sure where I will go from here. I do know for sure that I would like to travel, hopefully outside of the country. I am very interested in Africa and India but I don’t have any definite plans yet.