Meet Kaley Hubbard, one of our Summer AmeriCorps members. Kaley was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, and has always felt a strong sense of home here. Growing up, she loved playing outside and adored animals, much like any other child. It wasn’t until college that she became interested in sustainability and conservation because the importance of these topics was highlighted by the state of the world.
With only one more semester left at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Kaley is making dedicated efforts to become more involved in Omaha communities to educate the public, listen to their concerns, and tackle issues that she finds important as well. Originally, Kaley planned to move out of state to find opportunities in conservation projects but realized there were many opportunities in her own city. Omaha has always been home, so she decided it is was important that the things she loves about it can persist for a long time to come.
By joining Conservation Nebraska’s Common Ground Program, Kaley hopes to educate her neighbors on ways they can live sustainably, address environmental issues, and leave the city in a better condition than it was before. Kaley realized that by sharing her knowledge with a wider group of people, her impact can be much larger.
“I’ve always tried my best to make sustainable decisions in my everyday life, but I realized if I could communicate these easy changes to others then the positive impact could multiply,” said Kaley about her decision to become an AmeriCorps member.
Kaley serves the Northeast region group which includes Omaha, Fremont, Plattsmouth, South Sioux City, Columbus, and Norfolk. In her time of service, she hopes to connect with nonprofit organizations to build stronger community connections and use them to promote sustainability and environmental improvements for everyone.
“Environmental issues are deeply interwoven with other social issues and I believe it is important to address that so we can find better solutions to improve everyone’s’ well-being.”