Lisa P. Jackson: Environmental Engineering - The Moth

Summary

Summary of “Lisa P. Jackson: Environmental Engineering” Episode on The Moth Podcast

Episode Release Date: September 10, 2013

In this compelling episode of The Moth, Lisa P. Jackson shares her personal and professional journey in environmental engineering, highlighting the profound impact of her family's legacy, pivotal moments in her career, and her unwavering commitment to public service.

Early Life and Family Heritage

Timestamp: [03:00]

Lisa begins her story by reflecting on her father's legacy. Serving in the Navy during World War II, her father returned to a post-war New Orleans where, as a Black man in the late 1940s and 1950s, his career options were limited to roles like mailman, Pullman porter, or porter. Lisa’s father chose to become a mailman, a decision that instilled in her a strong sense of public service.

"I remember that feeling of real responsibility, of really having a role in the community that made me very proud." [04:15]

She fondly recalls accompanying her father on his mail routes, especially during Christmas, and the pride she felt witnessing the importance of his role in the community.

Educational Journey and Career Aspirations

Timestamp: [06:00]

Inspired by her father’s dedication, Lisa initially aspired to follow in his footsteps. However, after her father’s passing while she was in high school, her interests shifted towards mathematics and science, uncovering a natural talent that steered her towards a different path.

"When you’re the first kid to be going to college in a family and you’re good at math and science, there really only one career choice that your mom can think of, and that’s, my baby is going to be a doctor." [08:10]

Defying initial expectations, Lisa explored engineering during a summer program at Tulane University, sparked by both curiosity and the allure of a free HP programmable calculator. Her exposure to environmental disasters, such as the Love Canal incident, profoundly influenced her decision to specialize in environmental engineering.

Professional Career and Public Service

Timestamp: [10:00]

Graduating from Princeton with a graduate degree in engineering, Lisa embarked on a career dedicated to environmental protection. She worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and later for the state of New Jersey, where she made significant contributions to environmental policies and initiatives.

"I remember thinking in college, if a chemical engineer can make the processes that make all this goop, it’s going to be an engineer who figures out how to clean it up." [09:30]

Her dedication culminated in her appointment as the head of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, where she continued to advocate for clean air, clean water, and the responsible management of chemicals.

Hurricane Katrina and Personal Crisis

Timestamp: [12:30]

A defining moment in Lisa’s life occurred during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Returning home to New Orleans to be with her mother on her birthday, she narrowly escaped the devastating effects of the hurricane. This experience highlighted the critical failures in engineering and environmental planning, particularly the loss of wetlands that exacerbated the hurricane’s impact.

"Because a storm that shouldn’t have caused the damage it did, did, is because the wetlands that should have been there to protect the city were gone." [13:10]

Facing the reality that her career in public service was not as financially rewarding as the private sector, Lisa contemplated leaving her role to provide more support for her mother. However, her mother’s understanding and appreciation of her work convinced her to stay.

Achievement and Recognition

Timestamp: [14:00]

Lisa’s perseverance paid off when she was appointed as the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2009 by President Barack Obama. A memorable highlight of her career was the opportunity to bring her mother to Washington, D.C., where she met President Obama, symbolizing the culmination of her lifelong dedication to public service.

"Sometimes you have an opportunity to think about all the things that influence you. And I think we all do a little bit of reverse storytelling where we make all the facts fit." [14:30]

She concludes her story by emphasizing the importance of reflecting on one’s influences and maintaining a steadfast commitment to public service, inspired by her parents' legacy.

Conclusion and Reflections

Timestamp: [14:39]

In her heartfelt conclusion, Lisa underscores the significance of public service in her life, driven by her father's example and her own experiences. Her journey from a young girl walking the mail routes of New Orleans to becoming a leading figure in environmental protection illustrates the profound impact of dedication, resilience, and community-focused values.

"Every day I think about my dad and public service." [14:35]

Lisa P. Jackson's story is a testament to the power of personal heritage and the enduring quest to make a meaningful difference in the world through environmental engineering.

Post-Episode Notes:

Following Lisa’s narrative, the podcast is briefly concluded by host Dan Kennedy, providing information about her subsequent role at Apple as Environmental Director and acknowledging sponsors like Squarespace and PRX.

This episode of The Moth not only chronicles Lisa P. Jackson’s impressive career but also offers deep insights into the interplay between personal history, professional dedication, and the broader societal impacts of environmental engineering. Her story serves as an inspiring example of how individual commitment can drive significant change in protecting our planet and communities.

Transcript

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Dan Kennedy (1:31)

Welcome to the Moth Podcast. I'm Dan Kennedy. This podcast is brought to you by squarespace.com if you have a story to tell. Whether it's about starting a new business or sharing photos from a recent adventure, Squarespace gives you an all in one platform to bring these stories to life online. With modern templates, mobile responsive designs, simple drag and drop tools and 24 hour support, you can create a professional website or an online portfolio in just a few minutes. For a free trial and 10% off your first purchase on new accounts, head to squarespace.com and use the offer code themoth9. Also, if you live in San Francisco, join the Moth at New Belgium Breweries Tour de Fat in San Francisco on Saturday, September 21st for your chance to tell a story at the show. Submit your one line pitch via email to tourdofatthemoth.org and check themoth.org for event details. Dressing freaky and riding bikes and bands and beer are things you like the most fun fundraiser around the tour. New Bell Jumps back in town. The story you're about to hear by Lisa P. Jackson was told live in New York last year. The theme of the night was too close to the stories of flashpoints.

Lisa P. Jackson (3:00)

My father was in the Navy in World War II so when he was done, when the war was done and his time was up, he came back home to New Orleans. I'm from New Orleans. His family had been there for generations and looked for a job. For a black man in New Orleans in the late 40s and 50s, job options boiled down to mailman, pullman, porter, and daddy picked mailman. And so he was a postman. And, you know, back in the days when postmen wore their uniforms and walked through the neighborhood, and I couldn't go on the route with him, but we would walk around. And sometimes I have memories around Christmas waiting for him to come from his last round so we could go out and buy the tree or do whatever we needed to do. But he would take me from time to time, and his route included parts of the French Quarter. And I just remember having this feeling when I was with him now. I think I know it was the first burgeonings of what real public service was, because, of course, a mailman was about delivering really important things. For those of you who don't remember, Social Security checks used to actually be a piece of paper, and people would wait for them. They were really important. And the mailman would always ring the doorbell on the day they came to make sure that check was in your hand, especially for poor people or people who really needed to make sure they got it. And I remember that feeling of real responsibility, of really having a role in the community that made me very proud. It was no different if my dad had been the mayor. And I think that feel, feeling of community service stuck with me to the point where I remember once he took me to the central mail processing facility in New Orleans. And I remember looking up at him adoringly at the end and saying, daddy, I want to work for the post office. And like any striver in the 60s, by that point, it was the 60s, my dad looked at me and said, no, sweet sweetheart. And perhaps he had a sense of longevity and career respect by the time I would actually be doing it, I have no idea. But he, of course, wanted more for his baby girl. So my dad passed away when I was in high school, and by that point, I had moved on from a dream of being a mailman to a pretty clear talent for math and science. And so when you're the first kid to be going to college in a family and you're good at math and science, there really only one career choice that your mom can think of, and that's, my baby's going to be a doctor. So my mother would say, when I Was valedictorian in high school. She'd say, my baby is going to be a doctor. And everybody knew I was going to go to Tulane. Roll wave. Tulane. No. And I was going to be a doctor. Now, I have to admit that this is a scientific part of the story, so you don't get worried. I did. When I was in high school, I went to Tulane for a summer program to find out what this thing called engineering was, because I had no idea. And I went because they were giving away a free HP programmable calculator. So, yes, there is nerdiness in there, But I get to Tulane and I'm still going to be a doctor. I'm going to be an engineer and be pre med at the same time. And I was okay. I was doing fine. But it was the late 70s, early 80s, and Love Canal was the talk of the town. And Love Canal, for those of you who might not know, was a big dump outside of Buffalo, New York. And it was actually a canal that was started by a man named Alfred Love. And he started a little bit of it, and then he lost all his money and he stopped and they poured chemical waste, industrial waste, into the canal, and then they covered it over and eventually pressure forced that waste out and it oozed into people's basements. And I do remember thinking in college, if a chemical engineer, which is what I was studying to be by that time, can make the processes that make all this goop, it's going to be an engineer who figures out how to clean it up. And cleaning up that waste was inspired an entire federal program, our federal Superfund program. And that's when I decided to be an engineer and work on environmental issues. So I go home and I tell my mother, and I said, matt, I'm not going to be a doctor. I'm going to work to clean up hazardous waste. I'm going to be an engineer. My grandmother said, baby, why do you want to work on a train? And my mother just gave me the look. If you know the look, if you have a mother from the south, you might know the look. And the look was one of, but you're going to be a doctor, right? So anyway, did believe strongly. And the more I learned about the field, that it wasn't medicine, but it certainly could make people healthier. So I finished college. I actually went to graduate school at Princeton. I came out and somehow found myself in public service and worked at EPA and then eventually worked for the state of New Jersey right next door. New Jersey. Strange. Strange. In New York City, but go Jersey. And so there we are in New Jersey. And I go home and my mom still has the look, but it's okay. But it's her birthday. My mom's birthday is August 27th, it's 2005. And I go home to be with her on her birthday. And that's a momentous period because that's when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf coast and of course New Orleans. So I was home, I was with her. I drove her out. There was a Saints game on the night before. I remember distinctly not wanting to leave because I couldn't believe we had to get up after a Saints game and leave. But we did. And I remember her grumbling and me grumbling. And we drove up to northern Louisiana. And of course I lived in the ninth Ward. And you know what happened in the ninth Ward. We were very fortunate. My immediate family, my stepdad, everybody got out. That's not true of some of our other relatives and certainly some of our friends, but my mom's moved. So now explaining to my mother and after the hurricane, it becomes clear that one of the reasons, besides the fact that there's a man made failure of engineering, the levees broke, but the other reason that a storm that shouldn't have caused the damage it did, did, is because the wetlands that should have been there to protect the city were gone. They'd been cut by oil and gas lines and by years of engineering that had unintended consequences. And finally my mother came to understand why environmental engineering is maybe better than being a doctor. I. Thanks. That's for her. See, you can learn now. Net. Net. So we keep moving forward. So the hurricane hits and I'm working in New Jersey and I really had a moment where I thought, I've been in public service my whole life. It's not the highest paid career. If I had just gone and taken my talents to the private sector, I could have bought her a new house, I could have raised the one she had. I could have done so, done so many things for her. And I really had a crisis where I thought, I need to leave and go make some money so I can help her. And it was my mom, because she now understood how important my job was, who convinced me to stay. And I'm glad she did. And as fate would have it, not too long after that, I became head of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. And not too long after that, in 2008, came a call from President elect Barack Obama. By the way, my mom was totally cool with that. So I think the most amazing moment, though, was being with my mom, being able to get her to Washington, D.C. and the President, being the person he is, of course, wanted to meet her. And so having my mom in the Oval Office meeting the President of the United States, embarrassing the hell out of me, but in a good way. Love you, Mama. So she met him. She's there. She talked to him. A woman who grew up in segregation in the Oval Office with the first black President of the United States and with her grandchildren. But where I want to end my story is what happened next. Because I had one more surprise for my mom, and that is after we left the Oval Office, we went back to my building at 12th and Penn, four blocks away. And we got her upstairs and I showed her the trappings of my office, which is quite beautiful. But it's the offices of what were once the offices of the Postmaster General of the United States. And you can't enter my office without passing through either door over the great Seal of the Postmaster General of the United States. And the conference room I use every day is full of icons of male men. Sorry, but yeah, they are all men. Through the years, it was a long time ago, they did them, and it was just cool to see all the things that I think have helped make me my strong mother and my dad and my kids and my brothers. But what I said to her is what I want to leave you with. Sometimes you have an opportunity to think about all the things that influence you. And I think we all do a little bit of reverse storytelling where we make all the facts fit. But I don't think it's an accident that I'm in that building. And every day I'm there, I think about public service. Every day I'm there, I do think about the incredible importance of clean air and clean water and understanding the effects of chemicals on our bodies and our lives and our kids. But most important, every day, I think about my dad and public service. Thank you very much.