Rhodes sophomore Taylor Sieben of Oakland, Calif., has earned an Honorable Mention in the national Udall Undergraduate Scholarship competition. The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation awards 50 scholarships and 50 honorable mentions to sophomore and junior level college students committed to careers related to the environment, tribal public policy, or Native American health care. Award recipients were selected from 488 candidates this year nominated by 230 colleges and universities.
“Taylor is the first Rhodes environmental science student to be recognized by the Udall foundation,” says Dr. Judith Haas, codirector of postgraduate fellowships at Rhodes. “Her interdisciplinary coursework as well as her experience with urban agriculture and community gardens on Memphis gives her an especially complex understanding of sustainability in urban environments."
Sieben, an environmental science and Spanish double major, has encouraged sustainability at Rhodes and in Memphis through her commitments as a Schutt Garden Fellow serving as an ambassador for food sustainability; as an organizer of Rhodes’ on-campus farmer’s market; and as an organizer of the “Got Food? Sustainable Food & the Future of Memphis” panel at the 2013 Mid-South Farm to Table Conference.
In her California hometown, she has worked with organizations on issues of food justice, which promotes a strong local food system, self-reliant communities and a healthy environment. Sieben graduated from Piedmont High School and came to Rhodes as part of the Bonner Scholars program for entering students who have a passion for service and social justice.