Rebecca Carter
FROM:
As we say in California, I am from "back east." I grew up mainly in Weston, Connecticut, a 10,000 person bedroom community of New York City.
HEROES:
My sister, who takes the job of being a big sister really, very seriously. I'm pretty impressed by Barack Obama. And Nate Silver (of fivethirtyeight.com).
PROUDEST ACCOMPLISHMENT:
I don't have a single moment, but a string of little moments that all come from my students in prison exhibiting a sudden new understanding and interest in an intellectual pursuit that they hadn't expressed before. My time there has felt very well spent.
SOMETHING YOU MIGHT TEACH AT THE SUMMIT:
Perspectives from Five Years [volunteering] at San Quentin State Prison
SOMETHING YOU HOPE TO LEARN AT THE SUMMIT:
What paths have others followed (and how do they plan to move forward) to make meaningful contributions to society. Really, how do you do it?
SOMETHING YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH IN YOUR WORK:
Feeling like I am putting my efforts to use toward the best possible ends. (I should note that I am mid-career change.)
SOMETHING THAT MAKES YOU HAPPY:
Memories of the election saga of 2008. Making someone else's day. Really delicious food. Dancing.
SOMETHING THAT MAKES YOU ANGRY:
Almost everything about incarceration: three-strikes laws, retribution instead of rehabilitation, trying juveniles as adults...you name it, I'll get angry.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAMILY:
My sister and I are close, though largely complementary: she is history to my science, forward to my reserved. We live in the same town right now, which is great. My mother used to work on telecommunications for PepsiCo but currently works with tech folks at Save the Children's Connecticut headquarters. My father is a retired publishing executive and former dog breeder.
AN IDEA TO MAKE THE 30SUMMIT EVEN BETTER:
I'm just starting to realize how rewarding mentoring and other supportive professional relationships can be - it'd be great to walk away with a group of people who are interested in maintaining this communication and checking in on our progress as the years go by. I know I can forge those relationships on my own, but there might also be a way to encourage or formalize that process.
BIOGRAPHY:
East‐coast born and bred, Becca is currently a biologist by trade, but she likes to keep her experiences broad. She has at turns been a wildlife rehabilitator, a museum exhibit designer, the president of the board of Telluride Association (an educational non‐profit), and a behavioral ecologist studying the cognition and evolution of Hawaiian spiders. Up next, in the fall Becca will join McKinsey & Company as a management consultant.
