Member, Oil Spill Prevention and Response Committee
Volunteer Spotlight: Skye Steritz
Skye Steritz’ passion for a clean environment started at an early age, during a childhood spent outdoors in Texas.
“I was raised with environmentalist values and became an advocate, especially for water, as I got older.”
You can hear the smile in her voice when she’s asked why she first moved to Alaska.
“My love of water,” she replies. “It’s critical to thriving of life on earth.”
Growing respect for diverse opinions
Her father was a geophysicist for Exxon for 30 years; conversations with him gave her a well-rounded perspective and a deep respect for oil workers.
“He recognizes the threats of transporting oil, from drilling to pipelines to tankers,” she explains. “My conversations with him prepped me to be able to communicate with people from all backgrounds.”
She pursued these ideas after high school, racking up three Masters degrees: water resources policy and management; water management and governance; and water cooperation and diplomacy. Her studies took her to Ghana, the Netherlands, Costa Rica, California, and Oregon.
“I was in water management classes with students from all over the world,” Steritz mentions. “In the Netherlands, I was one of two from the U.S. out of about 200 students.”