An Interview with Emelyn Joy Talento, BA, Environmental Studies, 2024

 

Emelyn Joy Talento graduated with a B.A. in Environmental Studies in 2024 and is a 2025 Conservation Leadership Program Fellow with the Land Trust Alliance (LTA).

I studied environmental science at Hunter because I have always had aspirations in pursuing a field in STEM -- I thought that studying the natural world and with the prevalence of environmental issues was something that was intriguing, worth exploring for a lifelong career, and requires unique fieldwork experiences. My focus at Hunter specifically was that I ended pursuing the Human Dimensions track as I was particularly interested in the sociological aspects of this field. Exploring our relationship with nature and how modern environmental issues are rooted in social inequality was something that intrigued me after taking Professor Campos’ Resource Management class my freshman year at Hunter. I thought that Hunter College's Environmental Science and Geography department is interdisciplinary as it offers a variety of classes (that combines humanities and scientific perspectives) and it allows for students to explore and figure out which branch or work of environmental science students would be interested in pursuing.

Now that I’ve graduated from Hunter, I wish I was more involved in societies and student activities although, I do have some of my proudest works which were managing SEEDS at Hunter and keeping it active while I was there. The group that I worked with were able to put out events, discussion forums, field trips, collaborations with other organizations which I hope were helpful to students and faculty of the department. Another project that I am proud of was that I was a part of Professor Frei’s green roof research group. I’m glad to be able to contribute to a bank of knowledge about green roof infrastructures in NYC and grateful for the opportunity to be involved in this extensive project.

I am currently 1 year post-graduation and I am proud to announce that I am a Land Trust Alliance Fellow and I am fulfilling my duties at a land trust here in South Carolina called Lowcountry Land Trust. I am a Community Lands Associate and I’ll be contributing to the community preservation projects here in Charleston county with a focus on helping the Gullah Geechee settlement communities. One of our missions here at Lowcountry Land Trust is to use conservation tools to help marginalized communities with climate resiliency, increasing public access to green spaces, and to create “community-owned, community lands”. My personal goals for this fellowship is to build upon my skill sets in GIS, grant writing, community engagement and overall gaining an understanding of land trust work.

I am unsure exactly of how I got involved with the Land Trust Alliance; it might've been my connections to SEEDS or it was through the geography dept list-serv. Regardless, my advice for current students at Hunter is to be actively involved in student activities as there will be plenty of opportunities that'll come your way when you put yourself out there!

Published: August 18, 2025