Alumni |
Thomas Springer |
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"The Knight Center teaches you to develop your environmental reporting and writing skills, but it does much more than that. It really helps you to think creatively and expansively about the natural world, and what your place in the world should be." |
Since graduating with my master's degree in 2002, I've continued to work as a senior editor at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Mich. These days, working in the communications field requires a breadth of media skills: print, video, radio, Web and public speaking. I've been fortunate to work in all of these mediums, both for Kellogg Foundation productions and as a freelancer. My commentaries and stories have aired on National Public Radio, and my articles have appeared in publications such as Michigan Out-of-Doors and Notre Dame magazine. But my real passion, in terms of writing, continues to be essays that deal with the tenuous connections between people and their local environment. This interest began with the encouragement of my graduate advisors Jim Detjen, Eric Freedman, Laura Julier and Howard Bossen. And what started as a graduate project has now become a collection of essays titled "Looking for Hickories," that will be published in 2007 by the University of Michigan Press. My time at the Knight Center also developed my interests as an "environmental citizen." As a volunteer, I've served on the board of my local land trust, the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy, and am currently chairman of the St. Joseph County Conservation. This connection gives me practical experience with the issues I care most about: preserving open space and protecting the native character of rural Michigan. And, of course, this involvement also provides plenty of good material to write about! —Thomas Springer |
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