Meet Tamela Trussell

We were lucky to catch up with Tamela Trussell recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tamela, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

I was born and raised with tremendous parental love and zest for life but was very impoverished in the areas of basic needs, health, and stability. Often, I did not have enough food, warmth, water, or a stable home. I experienced scoliosis that led to me wearing a body brace for twenty-two hours a day during my junior and senior years of high school. When I turned twenty, I had to advocate for the surgery I needed to fuse my thoracic spine. I struggled through my entire academic history to make good “grades.” But the paradox between fear and courage was united through learning and seeking varying perspectives, gratitude and respect, and forgiveness and love. These traits formed my tenacity for life and giving back.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

A piece of my story:

“Fear” took up residence in me from my earliest memories. I don’t remember a time under 14 years old when I was not afraid of “fear.” I felt I was in a bubble that prevented me from engaging with the world, but it didn’t keep me from being hurt. I hated it because I felt it tried to inhibit me from living fully. My life felt like a slow, broken movie reel. It was like “fear” had taken up residence within me. I could not abide being thus consumed. I was determined to make my inner self so turbulent that “fear” would have to flee.

Even though the world was terrifying, it was beautiful and intriguing. I was full of an intense desire to break the cycle of mental and physical fear by placing myself in physically and mentally terrifying situations.

When I was 12, I often biked to the Pecos River, seven miles from home, with my 14-year-old brother. I would make the long and slippery climb up the rusty ladder to the top of the three-story tower and jump into the murky abyss below. Petrified, I flung myself off the edge of that tower hundreds of times, but repetition could never dull the experience. My stomach leaped into my throat with every descent before my toes broke the warm green water. I was determined to show myself that I could fly, I was strong, and nothing would stop me. Having exhausted my fears, I would float in the river for hours of peace and solitude.

I repeatedly turned to the vast, ever-present Chihuahuan desert of New Mexico to exercise my confidence and self-reliance. I walked alone on scorching days and cool nights. I climbed prickly pear-coated cliffs and navigated stoney, arid, ephemeral river beds. I maneuvered around scorpions, rattlesnakes, mountain lions, and protective bulls. The pale blue sky, bright desert sun, and signs of Indigenous history enchanted and fueled me. Watching the horizon turn from orange to pink, and then a deep, dark blue bejeweled with twinkling stars, I felt small and insignificant, like “fear” had always told me I was, and yet I felt free, unencumbered, unconstrained, and light enough to fly.

The intangible challenges presented within my uncharted mind were far more challenging than the physical challenges I set for myself. Reading, writing, and mathematics felt like stumbling through the incredible, dark void of the giant Carlsbad caverns without light. I would concentrate hard, trying to spark my neural pathways and illuminate a path to understanding. With ferocity, endless hours, and exhausted tears, I got A’s, some B’s, and devastating C’s all through school. Years later, I discovered I had severe undiagnosed dyslexia. Although I obtained honor roll, perfect attendance, and was in advanced classes, I knew my brain was not the caliber of the more conventionally “smart” brains I perceived my peers to have. I refused to let my feelings that I couldn’t measure up, that I was less than, overcome me. I threw myself into my studies again and again.

Slowly, over the years, bit by bit, I noticed that “fear” disappeared for more extended periods of time. In my present life, it rarely reveals itself but when it does, I draw on the self-assurance and raw determination developed over many years and vast terrains to press into the challenges I face, knowing these experiences will continue to strengthen my skills and fortitude to continue to work hard for a healthier planet.
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Focused on professionally – whether it’s a business, nonprofit, artistic career, etc.

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Throughout my life, I’ve loved nature, learning, and sharing knowledge with youth and the community. I also feel overwhelming joy when I see others learn something new. I process my thoughts by thinking out loud, writing, and acting. Being a mother and teacher provided the opportunity to express those traits and for further growth and joy.

During COVID-19, I was in a transitional period. I had poured 26 years into my children’s and the homeschool community’s education. I was ready to learn more. Gaia guided me to further educate myself about the Earth’s natural systems and the harms brought on them by our consumption economy. I became a Climate Reality leader, Master Watershed Steward, and Alliance for Aquatic Monitoring (ALLARM) stream monitoring volunteer, and I serve on several boards: Conodoguinet Creek Watershed Association (CCWA), Cumberland County Collaborative (CCC) and as an executive member of Carlisle Climate Action Commission (CCAC).

While engaging with my community, I participated with national and international organizations on climate change, petrochemicals, health, and environmental and social injustices. The global threats from the petrochemical industry to human and ecological health and well-being motivated me to act. I founded Move Past Plastic, MPP, in June 2021 to advocate for environmental civic action education to address the “Key Stone Issue” of single-use plastic. MPP is a non-profit organization.
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Please tell our readers about what you do, what you feel is most exciting or special about it, as well as anything else you’d like folks to know about your brand/art/etc. If relevant, please also tell our readers about anything new (events, product/service launches, expansion, etc)
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Move Past Plastic (MPP) is a grassroots organization in central Pennsylvania sponsored by the TLC Foundation. It is a conglomeration of individuals, businesses, and organizations working to address the harms of single-use plastic and find, share, and implement solutions.

I’m passionate about sharing the interdependence of nature and humanity. We are a part of nature, not separate from it. What we do to our natural world, we do to ourselves. MPP offers resources, education, and support to communities, businesses, and municipal leaders to help them understand the complexities of the single-use plastic (SUP) crisis and move toward a regenerative economy. We seek systemic changes through local ordinances, zoning, land management planning, legislation, and personal lifestyle changes. Creating and using alternatives to single-use plastic to decrease consumption and waste will be paramount to stopping toxicities from entering our watersheds.

Connecting people to their watershed and the gifts it provides will inspire them to take civic action to protect it and themselves. MPP hosts A Series of Conversations on Single-use Plastic. The topics of conversation on single-use plastic issues change monthly. Some of the discussions were about the myth of plastic recycling, Per and Polyfluoroalkyl-alkyl substances (PFAS), contamination in drinking water, synthetic playing surfaces, biosolids, school reuse, fast fashion, and safe buildings.

We work on about ten campaigns, but two big ones are on Per and Polyfloural-alky substances (PFAS) and synthetic playing surfaces. We reach out to municipal leaders to educate them about the harms of these substances and provide them with resources to mitigate and use alternatives.

I’m most excited about the Creek Defenders project we began In 2024. Phase one is the Identification of Pollutants in the Conodoguinet Creek Watershed: A Recommendation for Protection. We aim to perform a data review to determine known and suspected contaminants of concern and their location and amounts. We will locate data gaps and recommend further testing, monitoring, and remediation. We hope to create a model for communities throughout the US to identify pollutants in their watersheds. It is always better to stop pollution from entering the watershed environment than to pay for the clean-up and the detrimental human and environmental health harms from toxins entering it. We have created a pollution report form and a map and blog of pollution data, including regulatory, academic, scientific, NGO, and citizen science data. Currently, because this data is siloed, it is not readily available. The Creek Defenders Map has or will display information on watersheds, pollution, human health metrics, political data, environmental justice community data, and more. The Creek Defender Pollution Report Form accepts reports on pollution and diseased and dead wildlife. This online community engagement tool documents pollution in the Conodoguinet Creek watershed (and any US watershed). It includes fields for pollutant type, location, comments, and pictures. The Creek Snapshot is a photo journal to share posts, photos, links, and files of the Conodoquinet Creek watershed on nature, news/pollution, and events.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three practical skill sets have anchored my journey: a love for learning and seeking varying perspectives, gratitude and respect, and forgiveness and love.

As a child, I could not understand others’ perspectives. Now, I can most of the time. I look forward to the paradigm shifts. The biggest thing I learned from getting a master’s degree is my ignorance. Becoming aware of my ignorance was one of my most exciting discoveries. It meant there would always be endless discoveries to quench my curiosity.

I am grateful for the tools I have been given. They are critical to persevering when things are challenging. Recognizing them and using them to their fullest potential has helped me find other qualities within me that I can nurture. A twin to gratitude is respect. I used to feel crushed when others mistreated me. I felt brokenhearted, confused, and helpless. One day, I heard, “You teach others how to treat you.” This perspective was a difficult realization that became an empowering one, too. I realized that to make others feel better about themself, I would belittle myself. Then they would make fun of me, and I wouldn’t understand why. I opened the door to ridicule. I learned that I can’t build someone up by knocking me down. That is not respecting them or myself. It is something I have to work on continually.

To forgive quickly was a gift my father gave me. This is necessary to overcome hurtful circumstances. Gaia enlightened me, “Those who feel right behave right.” Now, even if I don’t know why someone behaves unkindly to me, others, or themselves, I remind myself they are hurting. Don’t judge them. Find out what they need. How can I help? I’ve also realized that often, I can’t help them. Doing nothing may be the most helpful thing I can do. I can love others even if they are hurtful to me or I don’t condone their behavior. Having a love for others shows love for myself. This is important because we are all connected.
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What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
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A love for all things, including fear, loneliness, mental and physical hardships, cruelty, attributes I struggle with, and kindness propel my work ethic resilience and perseverance. Seek to be flawed and to let it inspire growth and wonder. Before starting your journey, don’t wait for the perfect plan, skills, and knowledge. Learn through failure, success, and being alone and with others. Make plans, but be willing to restructure them. Make goals, but be willing to reset and recalibrate them. There are many paths to get to a destination, and once you arrive, you should enjoy the moment and realize that your journey is ongoing.
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We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?

Focusing on strength can produce maximum potential in any endeavor. It can propel one to great fests, discoveries, and creations. That said, there is a place for being a well-rounded individual. Developing various attributes can help balance stress from focusing hard on a particular skill or project. I can help with creativity and empathy, opening up a different perspective that could help you achieve a singularly focused goal.

Having other honed tools in the tool chest lets you be prepared for when you lose your best tool and need to be able to pivot to other skill sets. I was always very physically strong despite my scoliosis and endometriosis. I could run a mile in five minutes and twenty-five seconds, do 20 chin-ups, 100 V-situps and 100 pushups, 400+ squats, work in the yard all day, and much more. I leaned into my physicality. When I turned thirty-three years old, I developed heart attack symptoms while driving with my husband and three and one-year-old to Sesame Street Park. After several months, I discovered my C4-5, C6-7, and L4-5 & L5-6 discs were herniated and bulging. This was just the beginning of a long road to my physical regression. Fortunately, despite difficult learning, I desired to work on my cognitive efforts. Even though I currently keep up with my physical health to the best of my capacity, I cannot sit and stand at a job daily. Because of my dedication to learning and sharing this knowledge, I created a non-profit organization to support the homeschool community, an education business, and, most recently, Move Past Plastic. I work with various people, organizations, and businesses. The ability to communicate has been critical to the success of my campaigns, outcomes, and impacts.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.movepastplastic.com
• Instagram: https://bit.ly/3qZ8Qjz
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/978525996022470/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamela-trussell-baab4563
• Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Z1kjp2
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbNeYjNDNrxssMN3oklBEFg

Image Credits

Tamela Trussell,

Conodoguinet Creek, (all water pictures except the Steering the Ship “Plotting a Course to Civic Action”