Pathways to Change
Mia Shifrin | OSI Intern
My name is Mia Shifrin and I am from Weld, Maine, and am working as an intern this summer for OSI. From a small age, I have been repeatedly introduced to the natural world and shown how it can serve as a playground. Growing up in Western Maine gave me ample opportunity to explore my backyard whether it was an after-school paddle down the Androscoggin River, a weekend trip up Tumbledown mountain, or ice skating on Webb lake. These experiences growing up have led me to feel the most grounded in outdoor spaces and have taught me to balance my outdoor pursuits and my studies at Bates College. While at Bates I study Sociology with a double minor in Rhetoric and Film Studies, and Gender and Sexuality studies; and spend much of my free time mountain biking, running, climbing, and skiing.
The lens that studying sociology has provided me for thinking about marginalized communities has helped me recognize my privilege, not only in my everyday life but also in these outdoor spaces. This has allowed me to see how the world of outdoor sport can become exclusive to those who do not have an easy pathway—a pathway that I was privileged to have during my childhood. An awareness of inequity in the outdoor world is part of what has led me to become an intern with OSI where I can grapple with issues of inequality and opportunity with a focus on outdoor recreation. The chance that I have to spend a large portion of my summer engaging with the local community through outdoor recreation allows me to share the skills and knowledge that I have gained through recreation.
In my role as an intern with OSI, I am spending time with the Katahdin Gear Library working to better understand its role within the public library, and how this space can better serve patrons’ needs. For those who do not know, the Katahdin Gear Library is an extension of the Millinocket Memorial Library that lends out mountain bikes, kayaks, canoes, stand-up paddleboards, and other outdoor equipment to anyone who holds a library card. This program aims to make outdoor gear more accessible to community members who may not have the means to access the natural assets of the Katahdin region otherwise. My efforts with the gear library have been focused on the long term sustainability of the program by doing a cost analysis of the space. While most of the planning work this summer requires being on a computer, we are taking time to talk with patrons and staff, help tune bikes, and aid in youth programming to gain more perspective on how the gear library can support the entire community. Although I am only a portion of the way through my internship with OSI, having the ability to grapple with these issues of inequality and access through the gear library is something that I have enjoyed and allowed for me to better understand how my knowledge around outdoor recreation can serve as an asset to others.
Yesterday at work we were able to loan out a bike to someone who was participating in the community youth biking program for the first time, and then later I got to ride with him during the program. The excitement he had to not only be riding on the trails with other kids but to be able to check out a bike from the library, was evident—something that only doubled our sense of purpose as we had just tuned that bike (a bike that had previously been deemed unrideable). I hope that throughout the summer I can have more interactions like the one I had yesterday where the joy and excitement that someone has from renting a bike is only multiplied when they can get a chance to feel the joy and freedom of riding — something that is not accessible to everyone in this region without the gear library. Furthermore, I hope that this work we are doing within the community and within ourselves will allow me to further understand how our passions for the outdoors can be used to create positive change and pathways in accessing natural resources in rural areas.