Alumna Named Goodall Institute's UN Youth Rep.

Adrienne Bermingham ’11, was selected by the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) to serve as the international nonprofit’s youth representative to the United Nations (UN). As a UN Youth Representative, Berminham will speak on behalf of Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots, the Institute’s global youth program, at special meetings on UN activities. In addition, she will contribute her ideas and creativity to projects and initiatives that the Institute pursues with the United Nations.

Bermingham joined JGI in August 2011 as the Institute’s Youth Leadership Fellow. The fellow’s role is to support Roots & Shoots’ efforts to engage young people in projects that improve the environment and raise the quality of life for people and animals. Bermingham’s responsibilities include conducting trainings at schools, workshops and conferences; overseeing the Roots & Shoots Youth Leadership Initiative; serving as a Roots & Shoots media spokesperson; and spearheading online outreach.

Most recently, Bermingham worked with Institute staff to develop and launch the latest Roots & Shoots Global Youth Campaign, One Million Hours of Service. The campaign, which emphasizes civic engagement, encourages young people around the globe to reach and record a total of one million hours of service. To launch and promote the campaign with Roots & Shoots groups and community leaders, Bermingham traveled to New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, CA, and New Orleans, LA, and she will continue her outreach until the campaign ends in December. Thanks in large part to Bermingham’s efforts, the campaign has already contributed 50,000 service hours.

Bermingham graduated cum laude from Canisius University in 2011 with a degree in political science and minors in anthrozoology and zoo biology. While there, she served as a senior fellow with the Canisius Institute for the Study of Human-Animal Relations and as the vice-president of the College Democrats. During her undergraduate career, Bermingham also traveled extensively, including a trip to snorkel on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and an excursion to howl with the wolves in the Canadian wilderness. 

Bermingham actively documents her fellowship experiences on the Roots & Shoots Fellow Blog. To keep up with her work, please visitfellowblog.rootsandshoots.org.