Erin Rowland ‘93 is the Public Relations spokesperson for Planned Parenthood’s New England chapter. After graduating from Dartmouth, she worked for ten years at the Public Land Trust Nature Conservancy creating a public affairs program. Rowland’s interest in this field was inspired while learning about women’s health issues and reproductive rights in Kenya on the Dartmouth Environmental Studies FSP. She is currently the Public Relations spokesperson for Planned Parenthood’s New England chapter; Planned Parenthood is a non-profit organization working in the United States to address the global environmental issue of women’s reproductive rights. Rowland encourages students to pursue interest in the non-profit sector; jobs are available and world travel is not necessary to work on an issue of global environmental concern.

Allison: When did you begin working for Planned Parenthood (PP)?
Erin: One and a half years ago.

A: How did your undergraduate study lead you to this field?
E: My experience in Kenya was fabulous. I got to interact with cultures where women don’t have reproductive rights or access to healthcare; in Kenya abortion is illegal. My host mother in Nairobi shared her story of her family’s choice not to circumcise her. Her tribe was becoming Christian and this was a difficult decision. Her mother experienced genital mutilation. She was a member of the Mehru tribe, mostly an agricultural group that now lives in urban areas. My host-mother’s father was a member of the Samburu tribe – mostly nomadic pastoralists. He had two wives and 18 children. In the Masia tribe, genital mutilation still is the norm for that culture. Dartmouth students talked with each tribe about issues of childcare and sexuality. Both of my host mother’s father’s wives wives were circumcised. One wife was chosen out of love and was about his same age. He was able to marry because had cattle from his father’s death which provided the financial security to be able to marry his sweetheart.
It has been a number of years since that experience, but it remains relevant and motivating for me. It gave me sense of the spectrum of women’s experience in the world and the different ways that reproduction is controlled. It motivated me to advocate for women’s health and reproductive rights. Such an experience sits over time and you think about it over the years; different things remind you of it and you think again or see it a new light.

A: Did you pursue graduate study?
E: No, I went straight into environmental advocacy with the Nature Conservancy’s Trust for Public Land. I spent ten years there, and I was involved with creating a public affairs program. It enabled me to develop my own skills in terms of media outreach and publications and to prepare for the position of communications manager at Planned Parenthood. I was always interested in women’s issues. It’s fun. I enjoyed environmental advocacy too though. My job now is partially doing interviews, press releases, and talking with reporters. The other half is communications – publications and web site management.

A: What are the hot issues in PPH right now?
E: Being in Massachusetts we have a wonderful environment. There are challenges at the national level since the Republican party became more closely connected with anti-choice in the majority Republican Congress and with the Bush administration. A wide variety of regulatory budget measures and a common theme of restricting access causes most people to think about abortion. At PPH we provide a full range of services— contraception, HIV testing, and sex education for young people. Significant challenges at the national level have come up. There have been funding cuts in the area of family planning, a movement to gain control of sex education in public schools. Funds are available for programs emphasizing abstinence until marriage. Educators are prohibited to talk about protection, unless they emphasize failure rates. This undermines the progress made over the past 30 years to reduce pregnancy rates.

In Massachusetts, however, we still have funding for family planning. The Bush administration encourages harsh restrictions on abortion at the national level. We’re lucky that in Massachusetts we have a pro-choice legislature and speaker of house. Our governor is of mixed opinion. Politically moderate views increase access to contraception. In Massachusetts we have passed legislature for contraception to be the core of the public school program. We don’t face as much daily harassment with protestors. We feel lucky to be working here. Each PPH is independent. We have affiliate chapters across the state associated in federation. Each is an independent organization, chartered in Massachusetts. We have health centers across Massachusetts and we help each other and share info and resources.

A: What would you like to tell Dartmouth Environmental Studies undergraduates?
E: The Environmental studies program is very worthwhile. I encourage students to participate. In school I didn’t have a very good sense of the non-profit sector. I wanted to work as an advocate, but didn’t know about the many opportunities with environmental advocacy groups, among others. If you do feel strongly that you want to give back to community, there are many opportunities to find a fit for you. I think sometimes undergrads think that only a few people can find those jobs, but that wasn’t my experience, so I encourage you to look around. It takes work and networking to find a good job. It isn’t any harder than the for-profit job-search, you just have to know what you want and work for it. That’s the hardest part, when you come out of school.