Women’s History Month became a national annual observance in 1980. Since then, it has become a critical way to recognize the work, achievements, and presence of women throughout the United States and the world.  

For this Women’s History Month, we would like to recognize the work that women are doing across the University of Iowa’s campus in fields of sustainability, technology, and science. While there is so much great work occurring across campus by female faculty, we interviewed three women in environmental and sustainability fields to acknowledge their incredible time, dedication, and presence here on campus.  

Dr. Silvia Secchi is a professor in the Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences, as well as the Director of Undergraduate Studies in her department. While she works under a department concerning geography and sustainability, she has three degrees in economics and classifies herself as a natural resource economist. As an interdisciplinary scholar and economist, Dr. Secchi highlights the importance of finding an interconnection between her studies and an appreciation with nature. “If you don’t have opportunities to go to the beach, see eagles, or smell the flowers in the spring in a prairie, you won’t know how much you value these things,” Secchi said. She has learned this through experiences like volunteering at nature and raptor rehabilitation centers in Illinois and Iowa. It is through opportunities like these that she has been able to find value and appreciation in her work.  

Dr. Secchi is currently working on two research projects. Her first is called Diversifying the Corn Belt, where a group of students and a post doctorate student are studying a series of images dating back to the 1930s to see how land use and formations have changed with farming techniques. Her second project centers on the role of absentee landowners with farming in Iowa. While Dr. Secchi is passionate about her studies, she realizes that it can be intimidating and discouraging to enter into the field of sustainability. To all the young women and people looking to enter the workforce, Dr. Secchi reminds them to find joy in what they do. “It’s not always sunshine and rainbows in Iowa. It’s not the tropical climate, but the winter can be beautiful here, right?” Secchi said. 

Also working in the Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences is Dr. Susan Meerdink. Dr. Meerdink works in the field of Geographic Information Systems/Science (GIS) and remote sensing technology, combining the branches of ecology and machine-based studies to better understand and visualize the world around her. An Iowa native, Dr. Meerdink attended the University of Northern Iowa where she attained a Bachelor of Science degree in Geographical Information Science. The technology surrounding GIS was just introduced at the time Dr. Meerdink studied as an undergraduate, meaning she has worked with it from the beginning and witnessed the expansion and development of GIS throughout the years. Concerning the use of GIS now, Dr. Meerdink has noticed its growth and exciting developments; “the scope has become so much larger to actually tackle some of these bigger questions that we’d been asking but hadn’t yet had the technology to support”, she said. 

Dr. Meerdink, herself, is on the forefront of some of these bigger questions. Her current research is focused on the identification of invasive species in the Everglades National Park in Florida. Her team uses remote sensing technology on helicopters to capture images of the hard-to-access locations of these invasive species. Their goal for this research is to help identify the scope of these invasives so that staff can develop plans for management. This work can be challenging with daily thunderstorms along with the sheer size of the area covered by their research. She notes that when working through these challenges, whether as a researcher or as a first-year in undergrad, it is important to find a community. “You need somebody there just to acknowledge the hardness, because you can do hard things, but you need to at least be seen”, Meerdink said. 

Dr. Betsy Stone is yet another faculty member making changes in the world of environmental science. Dr. Stone is an atmospheric chemist at the university who studies how particles in the atmosphere affect air quality. Starting about two decades ago, Dr. Stone started her research and has continued it since, authoring, participating, and developing over a hundred publications. This work has taken her across the United States, from California to New York, and across the world, including most recently Melbourne, Australia and Nepal. In those locations, she has studied urban and rural air quality, as well as sea spray aerosols. These different studies are called field campaigns. “These field campaigns might bring together 20 or 40 different scientists from around the US, and even the globe, to come and take measurements that when we put them all together, can help us figure out these more challenging research questions”, Dr. Stone said. 

Dr. Stone’s work has gone on to support air quality management and solve issues of sustainability in our atmosphere. With all of this incredible work, however, Dr. Stone did not originally plan for a career in chemistry. After taking an organic chemistry class, though, her position shifted, and she fell in love with atmospheric chemistry. For young people in the field, perhaps struggling with these decisions, she tells them to get involved. “There’s a tremendous need for people who are passionate and committed to the environment”, she said. Dr. Stone finds that the best way to find what you are looking for is to get involved early and find those niches, like she did. “Whether you’re interested in the environment or something else, pursue research early, because it is a very unique experience”, Dr. Stone added. To finish off, she left the minds of the next generation with a reminder. “Pursue your dreams and passions, even if it seems challenging, you can still do it”, she said. 

Dr. Secchi’s, Dr. Meerdink’s, and Dr. Stone’s work make up just part of the incredible impact that women at the University of Iowa are achieving on campus. We can look to them to learn more about sustainability, technology, environmental science, and breakthroughs in the field of environmental studies. We encourage you this month to take a moment to reflect on the amazing work that women are achieving in the world of sustainability, as well as the world of women’s history.