3 Questions With ... Philanthropist Natalie Yee

The Women's Giving Circle of Howard County is proud to amplify the voices and stories of women givers in our community through our regular series "Our Giving, Our Stories". Inspiring philanthropic leadership and increasing giving by amplifying the voices of women and girls are among the goals of this effort and we are committed to advancing this important work in our community.​

This month for Earth Day we are profiling Natalie Yee, Environmental Program Manager at the Columbia Association.

We asked her what moves her to give her time, talent, and financial resources, and she said:

"Seeing the impact we can make, both for the environment and within people. Every tree planting, invasive removal, trash clean up – you can see the physical benefits you’ve made and can come back and monitor how that site is doing. It’s also really fulfilling seeing other people enthusiastic after an event, knowing they’ve done a worthwhile job for their local environment."

We asked Natalie when she started giving to issues that are important to her, and here's what she said:

"My interest in helping the environment started when I was young, thinking how cool it was that things could be recycled into other things. I was part of the green team in high school, received a degree in environmental policy and management, and began my professional journey in the Office of Sustainability while at college."

And, we asked what advice she has for those interested in giving back, and she said:

"Be active, and go wide. Getting involved and learning about the different aspects of the environment, even ones that may not seem interesting at first. "The environment" is such a broad term, covering topics from trees to toads, pollinators to plastic, agriculture to air quality, energy to ecosystem services. There's so much out there to explore!"

Here's several organizations that Natalie currently supports:

• Columbia Community Care
• Howard Community College
• Howard County Conservancy

Thank you, Natalie, for all that you do for our community!

Learn more about the ​WGC's "Our Giving, Our Stories" and nominate a woman today! We are always accepting the names of women throughout the year who may be profiled for their inspiring philanthropic leadership.

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