Social Networking

Even in an age of social media, I have faith in human outreach.

Still, I can only say that something came over me in spirit when, one day, I tweeted to one of my heroes, Lisa P. Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives.

I wrote that someday I would love to shadow her at work, never anticipating a reply.

But she gave me even more: an invitation to come visit.

We talked on the phone, and she flew me out to Apple headquarters in California. We spent the day together, meeting and strategizing with other senior VPs and even Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook.

We still keep in touch.

In fact, Lisa’s ongoing mentorship helps me pursue our shared passion: promoting environmental stewardship while generating economic growth.

This area has been a cornerstone of my studies at the Weatherhead School of Management and my decade-long career as an advocate for public green spaces and infrastructure.

Now I strive for something more, too: to help future leaders the way Lisa has helped me—a stranger on the other end of a tweet, with hopes and dreams all her own.

—Shanelle Smith, a full-time MBA student and state director of the Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit land conservation organization