Sustainability Internship Experience at Patina Wellness Center

Rachel Hudgens, BA in Sustainability, and Track in Policy and Governance

Native American Connections Patina Wellness Center

Patina Wellness Center

Recycling Education

Patina Wellness Center is an organization under Native

American Connections. The product of an interdisciplinary
project, Arizona State University students and Native
American Connections President and CEO Diana Yazzie
Devine created this facility. Patina Wellness Center
combined Guiding Star and IR, female and male
rehabilitation centers. This new facility opened in July
2016 and is an asset to the community.

Created brochures on appropriate recycling practices at

Patina wellness Center
Designed a PowerPoint on waste diversion and presented
it to the staff of Patina Wellness Center.
Made a infographic demonstrating the impact recycling
has on the environment
Attended meetings with Eric Johnson and Daniel Velez to
here about their waste diversion goals throughout Native
American Connections

Fig. 1. This patch of land

is where the garden is set
to be built. It is along side
a patio with chairs and
umbrellas and is attached
to the dining area. This
area has great potential
to be a hub of social
interaction.

The cornerstone of Patina Wellness Center is the emphasize

on holistic approaches to healing. Patina Wellness Center
couples cultural healing practices with evidence based
clinical programs. Cultural healing includes smudging,
talking cycles, sweat lodges, and creating artwork.
Sustainability really fits into this framework because when
creating a sustainable solution, the sustainability
professional doesnt just assess one driver within the
system. We understand that problems are caused and
mitigated in complex causal chains and so does Patina
Wellness center.
Fig. 2. This is an image
of Native American
Connections Patina
Wellness Centers talking
circle room. This
incredible room utilizes
natural light, and a wall
made from lumber that
absorbs the smell of
burning sage and cedar.
People that attend talking
circle are free to open up,
share their stories,
gratitude, and personal
growth.
Fig. 3. Me playing giant
Jenga at Patina Wellness
Centers Grand Opening

Patina Wellness Center &

Sustainability
As mentioned before, Patina Wellness Center focuses on
holistic approaches to health and wellbeing. This
corresponds with the goals of sustainability. As
sustainability professionals, we are taught to assess all
drivers within a system to properly understand the
complexity of it Patina Wellness Center does the same
with human wellbeing.

Fig. 6.
I applied for and
won a seed
grant through
Native Seeds.

The projects I worked on while interning here expand

the balance of the triple bottom line within the Patina
community. The garden will promote relaxation, pride in
ones environment, and benefit local birds, insects, and
air quality. The waste diversion aspect of my internship
increased social awareness of the importance of
recycling. Education will lead to an increased rate of
appropriate diversion techniques making municipal
recycling facilities more efficient.
Fig. 7. I created a chart that
shows how to properly
allocate the seeds within the
garden

Changing Lives and Building

Healthier Communities
Native American Connections Patina Wellness Center is a 45
day substance abuse rehabilitation facility. Both men and
women are accepted into the program and they have special
considerations for women that are pregnant and
postpartum.

Garden Process

Fig. 4. First slide of the waste diversion PowerPoint I

made

Garden Preparation

Received input from the cultural healer, chef, and

residents of Patina Wellness Center

Researched culturally significant plants and as well as

species suitable for this area

Applied for and won a grant to get the seeds for free

Designed a garden that fits the space allotted

Created a cost sheet

Made a donation Flyer that fits the aesthetic of Native

American Connections

Created computer images of the potential garden to

show outside parties my vision

Fig. 5. The
donation flyer I
made to help find
people to fund the
garden.

Fig. 8. Using the

guide created in fig.7,
I created this vision for
my garden

Patina Wellness Center and

My Career Goals
My career aspiration is to go into city management. Although
this internship aligns more with non- profit work it has still
ben a valuable experience. This internship has taught me to
be more goal oriented, and self driven I was able to produce
results with little amounts of direction. These skills will lend
themselves to a plethora of job opportunities and I am glad
that I was able to learn them here. I was also able to learn
some lessons in humility which id something I am sure I will
need going into city management. Not every project you
work on will pan out and thats okay. It is not a waste of time
as long as you learn something new from the experience.

Acknowledgments

Unfortunate Setbacks
At one point we had a potential donor and it seemed
promising that the garden would be built within my time at
Native American Connections Patina Wellness Center. Sadly,
the potential donor backed out after about a week of first
showing interest in the project. We were never able to find a
another donor that would allow the garden to be built by
the end of the semester.
However, a high school group has adopted the project. They
will be submitting a proposal in January to receive funding
for the project. If they are awarded the money, the garden is
likely to be functional in March. It is unclear how much of
my work will be used in their design and implementation of
the garden. If the seeds I won are not used in Patinas
garden, then they will be used in other gardens in the
Native American Connections system.

I would like to thank my internship

supervisor, Danelle Trottier, for
guiding me through this process.
Thank you to Patty Talahongva for
being a wealth of knowledge about
Native American culture and
gardening. Thank you to Hedy Emery
and Andres for giving me input
during the garden planning process,
and thank you to Jane for being warm
and inviting every morning.

For Further Information

Please contact: rachel.hudgens@asu.edu
Other Sources: linkedin.com/in/rachelhudgens
rachelhudgens.weebly.com