To Garrison Davis, the nature preserve bordering his childhood home was a sanctuary. “It’s where I went to think, relax, and appreciate life,” he says. Now, his mission is to protect that preserve and the environment we all share.
Garrison’s service journey started shortly after high school. Joining the Public Allies Delaware AmeriCorps apprenticeship program in 2016, he was placed at West Side Grows Together, a coalition of Wilmington neighbors working to revitalize parks, strengthen businesses, engage youth, promote quality housing, and build community.
Public Allies was what he refers to as a “a fork in the road” for Garrison, a pivotal moment that kick-started his career. In addition to the mark left on his community, he is proud of the relationships developed with fellow Allies: “I always carry with me the stories of what some of them have gone through in life.”
With lessons learned and connections made, Garrison is ready to dive back into his passion for nature—and specifically for renewable energy. In September, he joined the Grid Alternatives AmeriCorps program as a Solar Fellow, a role which has him installing solar energy infrastructure in low-income and Native American communities in northern California.
Grid Alternatives provides Garrison an outlet to tackle what he sees as the world’s most pressing problem: climate change. Impacting not only the nature that he holds dear, Garrison sees the climate as a social problem, too: those who most need renewable energy often can’t afford it, and those same communities are the most vulnerable to pollution, disease, and natural disaster.
After his service with Grid Alternatives, Garrison plans to return to his home state of Delaware to pursue a Masters degree in international business. Then, he’d like to start a nonprofit and a business in solar energy, creating jobs for people to be part of the solution. “Eventually,” he says, “I want to convert the whole world to renewable energy.”