Catching Up on the Career Path: Dwight and Sarah
One-time environmental educators Sarah Kovalchick and Dwight Holloway are pursuing their lifelong passions to work in the great outdoors.
We caught up with them on their conservation career paths and learned how Wildlands helped prepare them for their present roles. Sarah is living her park-ranger dreams, thanks to her experience with Wildlands!
From Wildlands to Yosemite…
Sarah lives and works in the grand mountains of Yosemite National Park, where she serves as a Park Ranger with the National Parks Service!
She served an intern with Wildlands in 2020, went on to become an Environmental Educator the following year, and was hired by the National Parks Service in spring 2023.
Sarah enjoys educating people of all ages and backgrounds on the environment, local ecology, conservation, and stewardship, and she’s grateful to leverage her Wildlands’ experiences in this way in her current role.
Sarah says, “If you care about the environment, Wildlands is a good place to start!”
While with Wildlands, she inspired some of our youngest environmental stewards to care deeply about protecting our precious open spaces in the Lehigh Valley and Lehigh River watershed. This continues to be a critical aspect of work as park ranger with NPS.
Wildlands connected Sarah with a circle of incredibly caring and like-minded people, and because of her time with our organization, she’s expanded her community, both personally and professionally.
From Wildlands to Afros in Nature…
Dwight was an environmental educator with Wildlands Conservancy and has since transferred his skills, knowledge, and passion to connect black, indigenous, and people of color to nature as an Outdoor Recreation Coordinator with Afros in Nature.
“Wildlands Conservancy helped me build the confidence needed to be who I am no matter the space I’m in,” Dwight says.
There are some parallels between our environmental educator position and Dwight’s position at Afros in Nature:
- Wildlands helped him expand his skills and comfort working in the outdoors, speaking on environmental issues, and educating people about what is out here.
- Both at Wildlands and Afros in Nature, he has enjoyed encouraging people with less access to get out, experience, and make lasting connections with nature.
- Wildlands Conservancy campers taught Dwight to see nature through a different perspective that’s more inclusive, accessible, and creative, which he integrated into his nature photography.
To this day, he is close friends with his then-colleagues he connected with through Wildlands.
CAREERS IN CONSERVATION
Sarah and Dwight are perfect examples of how a curiosity for the outdoors can truly become a career, especially when you get started with Wildlands.
If you or someone you know is interested in a career in conservation, check out our current opportunities and apply online today.
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