Get to know CAP Instructor and Administrative Assistant Carly Winner! Carly teaches CAP Class, CAP Club, and other outdoor programs at CI. When she’s not in the (outdoor) classroom, Carly is most likely sharing CI’s success stories through social media or at our events.
Read our other staff and board profiles here!
Why is environmental education important to you?
Baba Dioum, a forestry engineer, stated, “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.” It is clear that to create an accessible and thriving environment, we must educate ourselves on environmental ecosystems and the complex issues within them. I believe one of the best ways to do that is to just get outside and enjoy those spaces. When students are able to connect with nature around them, they then can begin to understand the importance of solving those complex issues our environment faces.
Do you have a formative memory of when you learned to love the outdoors?
My summers were spent at the neighborhood pool from sunrise to sunset where I biked, swam, and played games. We had this small area with a massive oak tree and grassy patch where I spent most of my time. This small area supported many of my adventures connecting with friends, climbing trees, rolling down hills, and engaging with the smallest forms of nature such as bugs, birds, worms, and more.
How do you get outside these days?
I love spending my free time hiking, biking, and swimming around the state! My favorite is if I can find a way to connect them: this typically looks like a hike followed by a polar plunge in an alpine lake.
What’s your favorite snack to eat in the woods?
I like to make peanut butter, banana, granola, honey sandwiches while I’m out on the trail. This consistently ends in sadness as it has to be the stickiest thing to eat, but I will never learn my lesson as it is delicious.
If you didn’t work for Cottonwood, what do you think you’d be doing?
I’ve always wanted to find myself in ownership of a quaint bed and breakfast or another business in a mountain or coastal town. We would have a large produce farm with an awesome wood-fire pizza oven.
We’re so glad to have Carly on the team! See more of Carly by connecting with us on social media:
- Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram
- Join our Facebook CI Alumni group at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/49045662698/
- Send us your stories of what you have been up to since CI!
