Personal Logic Model

A Personal Logic Model where I am the product…mapping out my future self.

Typically logic models are used by NonProfit Organizations to develop their mission or purpose and thereby map out how their activities will support that stated mission. In this case, I am using this structure to help me map out my potential future career. This means considering my mission; reflecting upon the qualities I want to cultivate in myself, the resources available to me and what commitments I will be making to accomplish this next phase of my professional life.

This format was utilized in my course NonProfit Leadership and Administration as we developed a theme and purpose for the 5th Annual Multicultural Environmental Education Conference. This version here is an adaptation and very much a living document, meaning that it will adapt and change as I continue to move through the world and further refine my career path.

• Mission.
  • My mission is to be a steward of the land, a voice for the plants and through this help to heal the earth while also facilitating hands-in-the-soil learning and growth opportunities for the community. I have seen the incredible healing power for people that can come as a result of stewarding a landscape, and so I believe in this mission because I have seen it in action, especially so during my two terms as an AmeriCorps volunteer. This work has the power to help build community while simultaneously supporting local flora and fauna.

 

• Context.
  • I feel driven to be an advocate for our flora friends and use my voice and skills in order to help raise awareness. This work nourishes not only the land but also me personally, physically and emotionally.
  • While with AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Program, I led work crews of at-risk youth in habitat restoration projects which showed me how beneficial stewardship can be in providing folks with opportunity and purpose, as well as career development.
  • I see habitat restoration and stewardship as an accessible method for facilitating opportunities for community building and professional development, getting folks physically working towards a community project. The greater community would be welcomed to these events and would provide further opportunity for community building as the youth is able to network and develop relationships with folks from different spheres of influence.

 

• Inputs and Resources.
  • For the summer season I will invest my time as the Garden Intern at IslandWood.
  • For the fall season I will invest my time in gardening and sharing my plant passion with my home community in Sonoma County, California.
    
  • I will invest the next 2.5 years towards earning my MS in Natural Resources at Humboldt State University.
    • Constraints: finances
  • I am considering investing in pursuing a Permaculture Certification at Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC).
    • Constraints: finances and time
  • Post graduate degree I will invest my energy into joining a Board of Directors of a startup nonprofit organization that strives to build community through stewardship projects. I would seek out NPO with missions similar to Pepperwood Preserve, OAEC or Sonoma Ecology Center.
    • Constraints: time commitment and acceptance onto the Board

 

• Activities.
  • Input: Garden Intern
    • Activity: Mapping the garden space will help increase accessibility for this space for all visitors regardless of their familiarity to plants.
  • Input: Fall gardening
    • Activity: Rebuilding community with my nieces and friends while nourishing my wellbeing as I reestablish my familiarity with the local ecosystem.
  • Input: MS Natural Resources
    • Activity: Integrate my learning from IW into stewardship of the land, special attention towards indigenizing my understanding of stewardship; gaining new skills regarding habitat restoration from my professional community and conducting ecological research
    • Activity: Assistantship in a lab; financing my education while fueling my scientific knowledge, learning from my peers and professors
  • Input: Permaculture certification
    • Activity: Integrate traditional and sustainable methods of landscaping with modern day stewardship projects; increase diversity of career options
  • Input: Membership on a Board of Directors
    • Activity: Provide expertise on stewardship of natural resources and inclusion of local community with projects. Advocacy for social justice, equity, diversity and inclusion.

 

• Evidence.
  • At the end of 8 weeks of the Garden Internship, I will have created an annotated map of the IW garden, it will provide basic information about the trees, shrubs and perennials and will be completed according to the specifications provided by Jen. The provided specifications will ensure that the map is accessible to and usable by future grads, IW staff and general visitors.
  • During the fall, I will spend 2 days per week in a garden nurturing my health and the plants.
  • Acceptance by a professor into their lab at HSU for Spring 2019 and completion of the MS Natural Resources program by December 2021.
  • Be certified in Permaculture design by 2025.
  • As a Board Member, attend 3-4 meetings per year.

 

• Effects or Results.
  
  • The garden map will increase the accessibility of the garden for folks less plant knowledgeable and serve as a starting point for orienting future graduate students to the garden space. The ripple effects of this orientation can then spread to future students.
    
  • The fall season focused on plants will serve to further increase my familiarity with plants and help restore my mental wellbeing. This will also help revitalize my ties to my home community, increasing this support network will help increase my resilience for the next phase of graduate school in the spring.
  • Earning my MS in Natural Resources will aid my growth as a scientist focused on restoration of habitats. Living and studying in the small community of Humboldt will be a prime opportunity for me to foster networking relationships for potential career opportunities as well as developing professional relationships which I could leverage in the field to support my work and community.
  • Earning a Permaculture certification could benefit me professionally and personally, elements from that field could be woven into professional projects as well as landscaping on my future personal property. This certification carries an element of indigenizing, serving as another layer in which to integrate alongside the sustainable design methods learned from the MS program. Participating in such a certification would also further expand my professional and support network.
    
  • In addition to being a voice for the plants, I would approach a Board position with a JEDII lens; watching for and working towards justice, equity, diversity, inclusion and indigenizing. It is through this approach that I would operate and engage with the community being served as well as the NPO staff and fellow Board members.