The 2023-24 Environmental Ethics Fellows—students Anna Krebs ‘25, Karina Martin ‘25, Tatum Petti ‘24, Emma Young ‘24, and Sarah Young ‘24—co-authored a paper exploring the ethical dimensions of the levee failure and the treatment of the community in its wake, which included the risk of neglecting infrastructure in the face of climate change and disparities in emergency response to disadvantaged, often historically marginalized communities that are disproportionately affected by natural disasters. 

 

The Fellowship in Environmental Ethics is awarded from the Markkula Center to outstanding Santa Clara University undergraduates to support a project examining the ethical implications of an environmental topic, supported by generous gifts from John and Joan Casey, and Mary Ganahl. 

 

This year's fellows formed an interdisciplinary team that dedicated hours speaking directly with community members affected by the Pajaro flooding and aimed to understand the lived experiences of those impacted. “Meeting the kind community in-person to talk about a devastating tragedy in their lives was eye opening and very impactful for me," said Krebs ‘25. "The best feedback came from community members who were grateful that their story was being heard.”

 

Led by David DeCosse, director, Religious and Catholic Ethics and Campus Ethics Programs, Professor Rocio Lilen Segura of civil engineering and Professor Iris Stewart-Frey of environmental studies, their work involved conducting interviews in both English and Spanish, reviewing relevant literature, and studying the ethical, hydrological, and engineering aspects of the issue. They also contributed to various publications to raise awareness about the situation in Pajaro and similar communities across the United States.

 

According to Professor Stewart-Frey, collaboration with the Markkula Center brought “deep knowledge on ethical dimensions and ethical frameworks,” and an “organized structure for the team to work together.”

 

DeCosse highlighted the real-world impact of the fellowship experience, emphasizing the importance of engaging directly with communities: “I know it was profoundly impactful for our students,” said DeCosse. “This was an occasion for them not just to theorize about [the ethical implications], but to encounter them and these beautiful human beings in Pajaro.”

The environmental fellows of this coming year will be conducting follow-up research in Pajaro and similar areas around California. “Our hope is that our work coming out of last year’s project and the work coming out of this year’s will be important, credible pieces of research that contribute to addressing the unjust vulnerabilities that people in communities like Pajaro have to endure,” said DeCosse, adding the hope that participating students will, “leave Santa Clara with their hearts and minds disposed to do work that really helps people in these situations.” 

 

“If you like strawberries, they’re doing the work to pick them, so maybe we all ought to think about the conditions in which the people who pick the food we all love to eat live,” concluded DeCosse.