Today, for the "Women's History Month" celebration, I would like to introduce this fabulous woman
Meet Holly Parker, 47, fun, loving, smart, grateful and the director of UNE North.
She is a water woman. She is happiest when on, by or in the ocean.
Holly grew up in Andover, Massachusetts, although she also did a lot of growing up on Southport Island in Maine where she spent the happiest hours of her summers. She knew early on that Maine would be her home – it just took her 37 years to make it so!
She was blessed with amazing parents who made every education wish a reality. Holly went to Phillips Academy as a day student, which was the best of both worlds: amazing teachers; world class theater and music programs, an incredibly diverse student body…and she got to go home to her own bed and her dad’s cooking and mom’s baking every night! She went on to Dartmouth College where she studied English literature; she spent a semester abroad at Oxford University. After deciding teaching was her jam, she got a Master’s in Education from Harvard University. And then after deciding that sustainable development was her new jam 17 years later, she earned a PhD in Public Policy from the University of Southern Maine. While her courses and research were all incredible experiences, she credits her myriad roles as a teacher, administrator, writer, non-profit leader, sailor, boat builder, squash coach, aunt, sister, daughter and friend as being her toughest and greatest learning opportunities.
Holly is the director of UNE North – the Institute for North Atlantic Studies at the University of New England. She builds cross sector and interdisciplinary teams across sectors to help solve sustainability challenges here in Maine and throughout the North Atlantic and engages UNE students in building their own skills and confidence as sustainability leaders. She believes that sustainability is for everyone and that if we transform our ways of seeing and thinking about our world, we can achieve human/community, environmental and economic health and wellbeing. She is also an Assistant Teaching Professor in UNE’s School of Marine and Environmental Sciences and is a frequent guest lecturer at the University, in the community and at national and international conferences.
Head on. Holly is a Taurus and she takes her bullishness to heart whether tackling a PhD program while working full time or battling through injuries to follow her passion for living an active life, including playing competitive squash. Ironically, her biggest challenge is letting the bull rest easy and taking life’s challenges a bit less seriously, something she has had to face during the pandemic – a life challenge no bull, no matter how strong, can overcome alone. So learning to ask for help and seeing weakness not as a negative but as a way of inviting people in to share a journey with all its ups and downs…that is Holly’s ongoing life challenge!
Being a good sister, daughter, aunt and friend. Holly is proud of her professional accomplishments – but her greatest joy is in the relationships she has with her family and friends. Indeed, many of her professional partnerships – be it from her high school teaching days, boat building and sailing escapades or international sustainability work – have blossomed into deep and enduring friendships.
Holly is a water woman. She is happiest when on, by or in the ocean. Among her happiest places is aboard a sailboat screaming along Casco Bay. She is also a fierce athlete and enjoys keeping her chiropractor and PT on speed dial. She has played squash for 33 years and is a passionate member of Portland Community Squash. If she is not on the squash court, she is likely outside on the water or in the woods enjoying this place, Maine, which she can finally call home!
What do you value most in life?
My family and friends. Full stop.
Advice for other women?
Find a balance between nurturing oneself and pushing oneself. Women can fall into a trap of feeling the need to always “be strong and ambitious” in the face of the odds often stacked against us. (She likens it to yoga.) Holding Warrior Two Pose forever, well, it’s not sustainable. We all have to rest in Child’s Pose once in a while and trust that that moment of kindness and gentleness is helping us receive strength and grace for our next step.
Another one of Holly's favorite quote:
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life.”
- Mary Oliver
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#whm #womenshistorymonthproject #womansupportingwomen #womenempowerment #mainephotographer
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