WHO’s WHO @VCU: Meet Ben Saunders

For 24-year-old Ben Saunders, helping to preserve the environment is as big a part of his life as is attending graduate school.

Saunders, a second-year graduate student, works with the nonprofit Friends of Chesterfield’s Riverfront and acts as a mediator between the county, businesses and land owners. The group works toward making the Appomattox and James rivers healthier by preserving the nearby land and bodies of water.

“The project is going very well,” Saunders said. He added that the county was given a grant to provide funding to complete the project by 2007.

Saunders, a Richmond native, will graduate in the summer of 2006 from VCU with a master’s in environmental studies.

“Ben came in with an idea about what he wanted to do and worked rather aggressively to accomplish his goals,” said Peter Defur, graduate program director of environmental studies.

In his graduate years, Saunders has been working closely with Clifford Fox, assistant director of environmental studies, on projects to better the environment.

“Ben is doing excellent work under the supervision of the people in the departments. He overall is doing terrific and getting practical experience,” Fox said.

In 2003, Saunders earned his undergraduate degree in political science and public policy from the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn.

Directly after college he moved to Charleston, S.C., where he interned for a federal judge and worked for a law firm.

After he graduates from VCU, Saunders said he is unsure of the career path he will take.

“I might work with the state or a consulting firm that works with the state and private businesses, kind of like a mediator,” Saunders said.

During his limited spare time, Saunders enjoys hobbies such as mountain biking, hiking or any other outdoor activities.