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On a rainy Raleigh Wednesday, water-quality intern Samantha Lewis represented Sound Rivers and N.C. State’s Environmental Technology and Management program with a tour of the Walnut Creek Wetland Center for first-year, Honors College students.

“When I was a freshman, one of my classes took a field trip to the Wetland Center. That was my introduction to the center, but especially the environmental justice,” Samantha said. “Raleigh is much more urban than my home town, and I hadn’t heard about environmental justice before I went to college — that’s where I learned about it.”

Wetland Center Assistant Manager Celia Lechtman led the tour, while Samantha provided insight into both her school experience and her internship with Sound Rivers.

“We talked a lot about the trash traps, and how I worked on a project last year, testing water-quality in Little Rock Creek — how the connections I made at N.C. State led to my internship with Sound Rivers,” she said. “I told them saying yes opens up opportunities, and opportunities are stepping stones.”

In addition to getting learning about environmental justice through the Wetland Center’s history and Sound Rivers’ work, Samantha said they touched on how having community support is integral to both.

“This internship has shown me the importance of community involvement when it comes to environmental stewardship and how responsible scientists must learn how to communicate with those communities,” she said.

The Walnut Creek Wetland Center has remained one of her favorite places to visit during her college tenure.

“It’s an environmental education center, but it’s for all ages. I always learn something new whenever I go,” Samantha said. “It really teaches you about the value of environmentalism.”

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