ABOUT
ME
Earning Summa Cum Laude and Senior of the Year were great ways to conclude my collegiate experience, but they do no justice in telling the full story of who I am and who I aspire to be...
Lauren Dunteman
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Iowa State University | Biology
Pronouns:She/Her/Her's
Myers Briggs: ENFJ (Learn more here)
Strengths Finder 2.0:
Empathy | Adaptability | Communication | Maximizer | Relator
Born in Illinois, I grew up as a farm girl. Daily barn chores, no matter the weather or conflicting social event, taught me a lot about responsibility. And showing livestock at the fair taught me a fair deal of sportsmanship and that hard work pays off.​ I loved it. I'll always be a farm girl at heart. At the start of high school, we converted multiple of our crop fields to certified organic. The process taught me a great deal about organic agriculture.
I moved away from the farm to attend college in Ames, Iowa. My four years there were incredibly fruitful. By the time I earned my degree in biology, I had accumulated over 700 hours of laboratory experience, functioned in 3 different teaching positions, raised $4000 to host an event that resulted in 20,304 meals packed for the hungry, studied Spanish and Mediterranean Ecology in Spain, and remained on the dean's list for all semesters. As a culmination of these experiences and many more, I was appointed the commencement marshal as well as Senior of the Year by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
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After graduating, I moved to Michigan to work as a leader in the Food Safety and Quality Assurance Department of Cargill, a food processing industry. Although I felt incredibly fortunate to be so professionally employed right out of college, I recognized that the industry opposed some of my core values. Food processing is very wasteful by nature. Cargill has its own commitments to the environment, but our plant had a lot of areas that needed improvement, and I struggled to play a part in the wastefulness. Eager to hop on the opportunity, I started an environmental committee focused on reducing wastes (trash, water, air, electric) without sacrificing food safety or business functionality. It was a great platform for me to establish myself as an "environmental guru". I enjoyed displaying leadership and inspiring others within the facility to join me in my efforts. Ultimately though, I felt I needed to find employment centered around something more "me", so I moved on. I concluded my employment at the end of March 2018. I had my sights set on the western US. My desire to do environmental work mixed with my general love of nature and outdoor recreation had me very drawn to the great big "Out West" that I fell in love with as a kid. At the start of May, after some travels abroad, I set out on a 6 week solo backpacking trip from San Francisco to Vancouver BC to explore as much of the West Coast as I could. What an incredible trip! With a brief intermission to visit my family and help on the farm back in Illinois, I packed up my little Ford Focus and took of westbound. While I loved my time on the coast, I felt that Colorado was calling my name.
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After 2 months of car-camping, couch-surfing, and visiting with friends and family, I settled down between Denver and Boulder. I've been living here since November of 2018 and I have learned a great deal about myself and my professional goals. Im exploring as much as I can and doing the best that I can to integrate myself into my new community. Since moving here, I have found an intersection between my passion for environmental conservation and my love of agriculture. It's called regenerative ag, biodynamic farming, sustainable food systems, carbon farming, permaculture, and more. I am so excited to have found my calling, and you can learning more about that HERE!
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Where Do I See Myself In 5 Years?
I'll be living in my tiny home. I'm currently pursuing opportunities to learn about the ownership and placement of tiny homes. Ideally, I'll have chickens in the backyard and a garden many times larger than my house. As for my profession? I think it may be best to check out my most rapidly developing goal here.