While most college students are still sound asleep, St. Thomas first-year Hazel Erickson is wasting no time in her pursuit of a tough profession: politics. She wakes up early two or three days a week and heads to downtown St. Paul before her classes as an intern for Minnesota Public Interest Research Group.

The group is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that works with the state government on protecting the environment and, according to its website, strives to “create a better Minnesota for all.”

Regularly this spring, Erickson makes her way to the Capitol building early in the morning and sits in on the Environment and Natural Resource Policy and Finance Committee, which is a part of the Minnesota House of Representatives. She takes notes and then reports back to MPIRG on newly introduced bills that may impact the environment or the well-being of Minnesotans.

“I’m mostly admiring from afar at this point,” Erickson said of working with the Minnesota Representatives. “I technically could go up and talk to anyone I want at the end of the committee meetings. They are public, but it’s sort of intimidating.”

She became interested in politics her senior year of high school, when she took an entry-level United States government class.

“We went to Washington, D.C., and I just thought to myself, ‘This is it, this is where I want to work someday,’” Erickson said.

Erickson looks forward to a future career in politics. She is currently a triple major in communication and journalism, justice and peace studies and political science. Her passion lies in the government, but she does not necessarily see herself in a government leadership position.

“I want to work behind the scenes, because that’s where a lot of the actual policy work happens. Politicians often are just figureheads,” she said.

Her internship is currently unpaid, but Erickson sees this internship with MPIRG as providing her with the greatest payment possible — experience in the political scene.

“It truly is a labor of love at this point,” she said.

For Erickson, that love also extends to the environmental cause.

“Living in a good environment is definitely a non-partisan issue,” Erickson said. “We only have one planet and we should protect it.”

Abby Sliva can be reached at sliv7912@stthomas.edu.