In the Spring of my Sophomore year, I took one of my favorite classes at Ithaca College: History of American Environmental Thought. This class is a survey of primary sources on American naturalism. The course mainly focuses on the interplay between natural and human history, and how this interplay is understood in text and media. Addressed during the course are the questions of what is natural and how our culture constructs the definition of it.

The course culminates with a local history research project. Using the Ithaca History Center, students construct a narrative about an environmental topic of their choosing and then present to the community about said topic. This projects allow students to understand history on a small, local scale, and allows them to hone their research skills through their analysis of primary sources.

For my research project, I looked at how trains and the export of coal effected Ithaca's population and industry. My narrative essay documenting the experience can be read here.