By Ana Soto Velázquez, Mónica Ramirez-Androetta, and Jake Kerr

Tackling big environmental challenges is at the heart of our mission — and serving our students is how we achieve that.

When you join the Department of Environmental Science at UArizona, you take a major step to empower the communities and environment we know and love with the full support of our premiere faculty and staff.

Through our eight core research foci, we developed a program that pushes the boundaries of what was previously thought possible in environmental science. Whether it is Dr. Mónica Ramirez-Androetta developing world-renowned community-based research methods on the Mexico border or Dr. Raina Maier creating microbial surfactants that can help remediate mine sites, our faculty and students are constantly creating a better environment for us all.

As Arizona’s land-grant university and a designated Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), we proudly hold the responsibility to connect our education and research with the communities that raised us. We celebrate that our Environmental Science program in southern Arizona is made up of more than 30 percent Hispanic students and growing.

This HSI designation is paired with a Seal of Excelencia, which is a selective recognition given to universities that foster inclusive excellence for Hispanic and Latinx students. Achieving both opens the door to support our students with additional federal grants and foundational support.

We understand the logistical challenges people face when it comes to earning a four-year degree, so we developed the ENVS Online Program to offer flexibility for our students. Our online graduates have earned their bachelor’s and master’s degrees while in the military, while raising and taking care of families, and while working full-time jobs.

We also maintain strong relationships with Arizona community colleges, who we constantly work with to align our curriculum so students know they can transfer here and receive their degree efficiently. While hosting events with students and faculty from Cochise Community College, Glendale Community College, Pima County Community College, and several others, we establish a clear pathway from their schools to ours.

But the best way to hear about our amazing students and faculty is from them directly. We are happy to introduce you to Ana Soto Velázquez and Dr. Mónica Ramirez-Androetta.

Ana is a graduating senior receiving a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science. This year she received our most prestigious award, the Outstanding Senior Award, for her excellence inside and outside of the classroom.

Dr. Ramírez-Androetta is an associate professor in the Environmental Science department and assistant professor in the College of Public Health. She is a renowned researcher known for her deep connections to the communities she serves; her community-based research and communication methodologies have inspired change in research institutions throughout the country.

Ana Soto Velázquez

I grew up in Ciudad Obregón, a southern city of the Mexican state of Sonora. Growing up, I had the privilege of attending private schools, which allowed me to learn English from a very young age.

As a child, I looked up to my older siblings, Jesús and Iván, for their academic achievements, which inspired me to not only excel in school but also be ambitious and get out of my comfort zone. Seeing my family's efforts to pursue a higher education made me realize the endless opportunities that would come with obtaining a college degree.

I had initially started a Bachelor’s in Environmental Science and Engineering in Mexico, but soon I realized that there weren't many opportunities to grow there. During my first semester, I stumbled upon a scholarship from the Government of Sonora to study in Arizona. Financially, starting at a community college was the best option; I also didn't feel ready to jump right into an American university. Attending Pima Community College was truly one of the best decisions I've taken; I got a better feel of what college was, I made life-long friends, and I got a full-ride scholarship to study at the University of Arizona.

Now that I'm a senior in Environmental Science at the University of Arizona, I feel ready to move on to  a professional role, and apply everything I've learned during my undergraduate career. Specifically, I want to work on mitigating the environmental impacts of mining practices.

If I could offer a piece of advice to Hispanic or other potential students, it would be to get out there and acquire as much experience as possible. Trying new things is the best way to find what your interests are and discover your path along the way.

Mónica Ramirez-Androetta

I am a second generation Chicana, born and raised in Tucson, AZ, home to the O'odham and Yaqui, and within 100 km of the U.S. – Mexico border line; a symbolic boundary reminding us of the 1983 La Paz Agreement to protect, conserve, and improve the environment of the border.

Bearing witness to social and environmental resiliency and degradation throughout my childhood completely changed the way I saw and experienced health. I am an environmental health scientist inspired by the possibility that through partnerships, particularly with environmental justice communities, I may be able to elicit structural change.

With a PhD in Soil, Water and Environmental Science and a minor in Art, I am a transdisciplinary researcher. I received a B.A. degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, a B.A. degree in Studio Art with a minor in Spanish from UA, and a Master’s of Public Administration from Columbia University.

Through two co-created community science programs, Gardenroots and Project Harvest, community members drive and/or inform the direction and participate in most steps of the research process. Promotoras (promotors of health) and community scientists co-design data report-back materials and receive their data to translate results into action and share results with others. These efforts can build self-efficacy and foster positive connections to science.

Access to education is a privilege. It has been an absolute honor to pursue higher education and be in a position to teach and engage others during their own commitment to life-long learning – in a classroom and beyond.

People bring their whole history and existing knowledge and awareness to the table. Learning should be viewed as an ongoing, multi-directional, and contextually driven endeavor; people learn more when efforts are rooted in their sociocultural and physical environment and honor their lived experiences.

I recommend focusing on how we can generate solutions at the individual, interpersonal, organizational, community and public policy levels. Too often, we can feel overwhelmed by the wicked problems posed by pollution. I strive to propel my students out of the sense of impossibility and demonstrate how diverse individuals and organizations are generating creative environmental health solutions.

To learn more about Environmental at UArizona, please visit envs.cals.arizona.edu

About the Authors

Ana Soto Velázquez is Senior in Environmental Science at University of Arizona, Dr. Mónica Ramirez-Androetta is Associate Professor of Environmental Science at University of Arizona, and Jake Kerr is Environmental Science Marketing and Communications Program Manager at University of Arizona.