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Nadia Naverrete-Tindall: “I'd like Missouri to be green and to be environmentally friendly.”

Becca Newton
/
KBIA

Nadia Naverrete-Tindall spoke with the Missouri on Mic team at the CoMo 200 celebration on the 4th of July. She’s originally from El Salvador, but has lived in Columbia for many years.

She spoke about her passion for the environment and about the importance of community – both back home in El Salvador and right here in Columbia.

Missouri on Mic is an oral history and journalism project documenting stories from around the state in its 200th year.

Nadia Naverrete-Tindall: What Missouri in general is very good at is protecting natural areas and protecting the environment, but unfortunately, corporations sometimes have too much to say about it.

Like in Columbia, we have so much green space, and we are losing space all the time. So, I'd to see – I'd like Missouri to be green and to be environmentally friendly, and I'd like to see people understanding each other.

"People have a responsibility to keep their place safe, healthy by doing something. They don't have to grow plants, but at least to recycle, to use an efficient vehicle, or use more their bicycles or walk."
Nadia Naverrete-Tindall

There's so much differences with, among Missourians right now, unfortunately because the political situation, but I think Missouri is a beautiful, beautiful state, and I hope it stays the same way it is and keep improving.

But I always say that I like to go to recharge my batteries when I go to El Salvador. I need my culture. I need to be with my family. I need my friends.

But by not being able to go, I kind of was anxious about it. But I have – I'm, I'm very lucky. I have a husband that is pretty, pretty amazing. I feel more at home now.

But but I do miss my family. I visit every year if I can except for these problems with COVID. I couldn't go for a couple of years now. I managed to make family of friends here.

I was one of the very lucky ones. Instead of losing a job, I really got a job. I had lost my job back in 2017, but in 2019 – at the end of 2019, I got my job back and even I got my full time position.

I feel that I didn't suffer much because I had the option to be outdoors, and I learned things that I didn't know before like cooking things that I didn't do before. So, I had extra time to do things that I didn't have the time to do before when I worked full time.

People have a responsibility to keep their place safe, healthy by doing something. They don't have to grow plants, but at least to recycle, to use an efficient vehicle, or use more their bicycles or walk.

So, it just, everything that can help to keep the environment safe, I think it will be great if someone – everyone in Missouri would do it.

Becca Newton is a student reporter and producer at KBIA. They will graduate from the University of Missouri in spring 2022 with a degree in Multimedia Convergence Journalism and minors in Peace Studies and History.