UW Student from Burns Finds Community, Career Direction in Environmental Science

Growing up in Burns, a tight-knit Laramie County community of 300, Hope Langseth learned the value of looking out for one another.

"There's a big sense of community there," Langseth says. "Everybody knows everybody and, in Burns, we use it for the better. Everyone's there for everyone when they need it."

Now a junior studying environmental systems science and geographic information science and technology at the University of Wyoming's Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, Langseth is finding that same sense of community in her academic program while preparing for a career in environmental science.

Asked to describe the program in three words, Langseth chose: interdisciplinarity, connection and forward-thinking. The program's required internship component has been particularly valuable for her career preparation. She has had professional internships with Wyoming State Parks and Cultural Resources and the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality.

"I think it's a great way for you to use your skills, but also to see if this is really what you want to do and what your future career could be like," she says.

Beyond academics, Langseth credits the Haub School's career services team for shaping her professional development.

"The career services team is just absolutely amazing," she says. "They helped me so much with finding internships and making decisions, prioritizing what I need as a person, even outside of my career."

Three Decades of Impact

UW's Haub School prepares the next generation of natural resource professionals while serving Wyoming's wild and working lands and communities. With 1,275 alumni (1996-2025), many working across the state in government, private industry, nonprofits and education, the school offers six undergraduate and seven graduate programs integrating science, policy, law, economics and community engagement.

The school brings about $2 million annually in research funding to Wyoming while supporting communities through four dedicated centers and institutes. Recent milestones include a $5 million gift from Jay and Karen Kemmerer in 2025 to establish the Wyoming Outdoor Recreation, Tourism and Hospitality (WORTH) Institute, supporting the state's second-largest industry.

Haub School programs, including the Wyoming Conservation Corps, have trained more than 150 young adults and veterans since 2021, while the Biodiversity Institute connects people of all ages to Wyoming's wildlife through 40-plus annual programs reaching over 3,500 participants statewide. The school's Ruckelshaus Institute facilitates collaborative, long-term solutions to natural resource challenges, offers professional workforce development, and publishes the award-winning Western Confluence magazine, reaching nearly 4,000 readers across the state. Learn more at https://www.uwyo.edu/haub.

Additionally, the Haub School's Tomé Scholars to Fellows Program -- established in 2021 through a major gift from UW alumni Carol and Ramon Tomé -- provides exceptional students with full-ride, four-year scholarships and experiential learning opportunities to address complex environmental challenges. Recent expanded support from the Tomé Foundation has doubled the number of scholars on campus. Learn more at https://www.bit.ly/tomescholars.