Why Junior Ranger programs inspire future generations
When I was seven, my parents signed me up for the Junior Ranger program at Saguaro National Park, an experience that shaped the adult I became.
By Salomé Arrieta, December 17, 2025 // Western National Parks
Like other children, I entertained myself with many potential future careers. My constantly evolving aspirations are mostly forgotten. I do, however, remember the first time I realized that I, Salomé Arrieta, could be a park ranger.
Childhood adventures
Most of my adventures began with a beat-up orange Land Cruiser my father owned when I was little. As a desert kid, I always begged to go where we could find trees, seeking refuge in the high pine tops of northern Arizona. The desert is not a simple place to love, especially not for a young girl who wished for snow days and green lawns to play in like the movies.
I found solace in the national forests of Prescott and Flagstaff. We would stop to visit Arizona's great monuments while my dad would chat with the rangers and my mom would read any signage in what we called her “museum voice.”
Becoming a Junior Ranger
When I was seven, my parents signed me up for the Junior Ranger program at Saguaro National Park. As a Junior Ranger, I got to explore the Sonoran Desert as a scientist and a steward for the first time.
This experience had a profound impact on me—I got to define my own relationship with science, the desert, and the greater Earth.
The program emphasized the unique storytelling that the Sonoran Desert offers. Our cohort gathered to hear stories of the great green giants of the landscape, almost human in their silhouette and spirit. It was the first time I found pride in the complicated environment of my hometown.
A future of possibility
With the incredible support of my family and local outdoor programming—including the Cooper Center for Environmental Learning—I got to continue my exploration of the outdoors. When it came time to start college, I found myself pursuing an academic career in STEM, earning a degree in environmental science at the University of Arizona.
Connecting with the next generation
During my freshman year, I interned for a program called the Bio/Diversity Project, where I worked teaching hands-on and culturally relevant environmental science lessons in local Title I schools, working in the very same school district I'd attended. There, I had the amazing opportunity to work with young people as they developed their own relationship to the desert and science.
Growing seeds
Programs like Junior Ranger extend children’s connection to nature and widen their concept of who can be a scientist and what caring for our planet means. Building that connection is so much more than education—it is growing seeds for an entire generation to take on climate change with awe, knowledge, and resilience.
Salomé Arrieta is an undergraduate student studying environmental science at the University of Arizona, currently enrolled in JOUR 472/572. She maintains a strong passion for community outreach and sustainability issues, particularly in her lifelong home of the Southwest. She currently serves as an outreach and connection specialist for the Campus Sustainability Fund, where she supports sustainability initiatives at the university and in the greater Tucson community.
