Laura McCarthy ’04 sees a direct path from her education to her career. The grassroots coordinator for Audubon New York, the state program of the National Audubon Society, says, “It was my First-Year Program (FYP) course Observing the Outdoors and my environmental studies and writing professors at St. Lawrence that got me excited about the possibility of a career in the environmental field.  And my semester with SLU’s Kenya program prepared me for my career in more ways than I’ll ever know.”

The Albany, NY, resident who majored in environmental studies and English and minored in fine arts at St. Lawrence explains that she brings Audubon’s environmental campaigns “to our broad grassroots network by working closely with the 27 Audubon chapters around New York State, and by managing our online action alert system to inspire our members to get involved.” She helps coordinate volunteers for lobby days in the capital and for bird surveys, and helps Audubon chapters statewide reach their conservation goals by offering support from the state and national offices.  “I love the network of people I work with,” she says, “and the chance to meet new people everywhere I go who are passionate about connecting people with nature and protecting birds, wildlife and their habitats.”

Laura’s lifelong love of nature and the environment was nurtured at St. Lawrence. “Being close to the Adirondacks, SLU was an ideal location to stay connected to the outdoors, with opportunities like the Outing Club’s Peak Weekend and canoeing on the Grass River,” she notes.  It was this combination of location and opportunity that helped forge her future.