Esmeralda Hic

Esmeralda Hic is a third year, first generation college student at UCI. She is working towards her B.S. in Earth System Science and her B.A. in Chicano/Latino Studies.  She is passionate about environmental justice and working with communities that face environmental inequity and hopes to use her degrees to problem solve issues in climate change science and social inequality. Her passion grew out of the environmental and social issues her community in the Coachella Valley faced from poor air quality caused by the deterioration of the Salton Sea to other pollution issues caused by the carelessness of corporations. She aims to work towards a future where access to a healthy environment is not just a privilege granted to those who have the social and political power to afford it but rather that everyone, regardless of race, income, ability, or gender, has access the the clean air, water, and land that they deserve.

Esme is working as a Community Resilience Projects Fellow. She works alongside community leaders in Santa Ana on existing projects including Cooperacion Santa Ana and a youth-led investigation on lead soil levels in the community.