Senior Sustainable Development (SD) major Ben Pluska has recently been selected as a National Rachel Carson Council Campus (RCC) Fellow for the 2023-2024 academic year. Pluska will use the fellowship to develop a campus-wide project about environmental injustice in Eastern North Carolina, including engaging students in the development of a collaborative audio-visual exhibition. In conjunction with Pluska's Honors thesis, advised by SD Associate Professor and SD Honors Program Director, Dr. Rebecca Witter, Pluska's project will bring awareness to environmental injustices in Eastern North Carolina and equip students across campus with ideas and tools for approaching environmental justice work through intersections of art, scholarship, and activism. With a collaborative media exhibition, research, and educational initiatives, Pluska will work towards building a multi-modal understanding of environmental justice while also invigorating the campus community to engage with EJ activism. According to the Council, "the RCC Fellowship Program is designed to identify students with a passion for environmental education, organizing and advocacy and provide them with training in Washington, DC, mentorship from RCC environmental staff, and financial support to do the valuable work they care about and become life-long advocates for the environment."
photo of ben pluska
SD Student Ben Pluska Awarded Rachel Carson Council Fellowship