Christine Baek is a rising senior at Brown University double concentrating in International & Public Affairs and Environmental Studies. She is deeply interested in climate change policy/diplomacy, with a focus on sustainable development and energy security. Christine is also passionate about nature storytelling and writes for several publications on campus including Brown’s Alumni Magazine and the Forager Zine.
Internship Placement: Asian American Scholar Forum
As a CAPAL scholar/intern, what does CAPAL mean to you?
Through my spring and summer 2024 CAPAL Internship, I had the opportunity to join other Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander youth leaders in forwarding social change through advocacy and public service. CAPAL, to me, represents an organization that uplifts the AANHPI community by making internships and career development more accessible and fosters meaningful connections through the WLP sessions, workshops, and community action projects.
What is an issue or topic within the AANHPI communities that you feel passionate about addressing?
From my experiences in the environmental field, I saw that to forward a more just and effective campaign for environmental protection, we must diversify the voices represented in environmental leadership and the climate movement, which has historically overlooked or excluded disadvantaged and BIPOC communities.
What are your main responsibilities at your position? What are some of your big projects?
At Asian American Scholar Forum, I designed and launched a student-led digital storytelling platform for eventual submission to the congressional commission created by the Potential Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American (APA) History & Culture Act. In just two weeks, this pilot platform featured 15 interviews of student-nominated APA scholars/professors from 5 students conducted across 9 universities. I also wrote interview questions, panel responses & AASF Executive Director remarks for events including the APIAVote Presidential Town Hall, Perspectives on History panel at the National Archives, and APA Heritage Month at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. In addition, I created graphics for AASF social media reaching 1440+ people and conducted immigration/national security policy research.
How does this internship fit with your professional and career goals?
Interning with CAPAL allows me to connect my studies with community involvement and obtain a more inclusive, multifaceted understanding of the environmental field and human-environment interactions.
What does public service mean to you? What sparked your interest or desire to get involved with public service?
In making my own impact on the world, I first sought to define what that impact would and should look like. Looking at my love for writing, desire for environmental social change, and Christian faith, I find my commitment to public service centers on personal/spiritual learning and mentorship. Through my experiences in writing and curriculum development, I hope to make storytelling and environmental education more accessible to more students at an earlier age, calling attention to the diversity of environmental activism and climate change’s interdisciplinary nature.