Simon Pelfrey 26Ox

After taking various classes at Oxford, including Environmental Policy taught by Dr. Jenny Burgman, Simon took on this fascinating role by reaching out to the Office of Sustainability in the City of Albuquerque. 

“I wanted hands-on experience in the field of sustainability and to see if working in a government setting like this would be a good fit for my long-term career goals,” he explains.

He found that his classes at Oxford provided a solid foundation for him in this internship, including his Environmental Policy class.
“Almost everything I’ve applied so far came from what I learned in one of Dr. Burgman’s classes.” 

While this class adequately prepared Simon for the issues addressed in the real world, Simon also developed technical skills that he can employ to successfully implement change. For instance,learning how to write clearly about environmental topics in this class has helped Simon draft memos to the Mayor’s office and reach out to other department directors. Additionally, because of the small class sizes and community at Oxford, Simon gained the confidence to ask clarifying questions in meetings and share ideas with city staff.

In fact, one of Simon’s favorite moments during his internship was joining a coffee chat with a group of sustainability directors from around New Mexico. 

“It was really interesting to hear how their jobs are similar but distinct, depending on whether they work for a municipality, county, or even university,” he describes. 

What made this meeting the most memorable however, was not just the insightful conversations—it was a gift from one of the directors. 

“At the end of the chat, one of the directors handed out seeds for his family’s own hybrid Chili pepper, which definitely made the meeting memorable.” 

Thus far, this internship has allowed Simon to gain practical experience in environmental policy, thus allowing him to understand the value of starting small and figuring out what works before scaling a project. This grounded approach is something Simon hopes to bring back to student organizations he is involved with, including OxHOSA, the Oxford branch of HOSA-Future Health Professionals. 

“Pilots feel like a more realistic or sustainable way to try new ideas without getting overwhelmed,” he observes.