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Intern Profile: Frank Smith
Name: Frank Smith Job Title: Ecological Restoration Intern What is your educational and professional background? In the spring of 2006, I graduated from Colorado State University with a B.S. in Natural Resource Management and a certificate of Environmental Affairs. Prior to my time at the Foundation, I worked for ‘Ahakhav Tribal Preserve, a 2,000 acre preserve located on a Native American reservation in southwestern Arizona. While working for the Colorado River Indian Tribes, I was involved with environmental education, ecological restoration and native plant propagation. From high school through college I worked at Phantom Lake YMCA camp near Mukwonago, WI. I started as a resident counselor, but for my later years at Phantom Lake I led multi-day backpacking trips for young adults. Where are you originally from? I claim two places (If that’s allowed). I was born in Reedsburg, WI and lived there for the first few years of my life. When I was a toddler, my family moved to Madison, WI for my mom to go to grad school at the University. I lived in Madison during all of my K-12 education, finishing at Madison West High. What brought you to work in the environmental field? While living in Madison, I would go back to Reedsburg every weekend to help at my grandparents’ farm. Working outside at my grandparents helped to create a connection with the landscapes of southern Wisconsin, and ultimately an early realization that we rely upon the ground we tread. Also my family spent a lot of time outside hiking, fishing, camping, and canoeing. I learned early on that you can have a lot of fun when you are outside in nature. All I knew going into college was that I wanted to work outside and have a lot of fun while mending some of the wounds that hurt our chances for survival. How long have you worked for ALF? I started in March of 2007. What is your favorite part of your job? I can’t believe that I can say I have anything to with Aldo and the Shack! What is the biggest challenge? Learning the hard way that restoration ecology is a lot of invasive species management! How has working for ALF changed your thinking? ALF has helped me think about the necessity of conservation across borders. ALF does a great job collaborating with their neighbors (near and far). These collaborations are a result of the understanding that fragmented restoration and management efforts have left the landscape with “islands of nature”. We can’t focus solely on our own pieces of land in order to attain a healthier, more diverse and stable earth. What is your favorite Leopold quote/essay? "Acts of creation are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets, but humbler folk may circumvent this restriction if they know how. To plant a pine, for example, one need be neither god nor poet; one need only own a shovel. "
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