Amanda MacKinnon Beyersdorf
Class Year:
2003
Job Title:
Risk Manager, Macquarie Group
Areas of Study:
History
Hometown:
Las Vegas, Nevada
What made you decide to become a History major at Lake Forest College?
I am fascinated by people and the way they think, or have previously thought, about themselves, others, the natural world, any other worlds they might imagine, and how this leads to traditions and conflict, to all of the various -isms. Becoming a student of history was a great way to play in this sandbox and explore our American problems all the way back to their roots.
Is there a specific memory that sticks out to you from your time as a history student?
I can give you a direct quote, a sentence indelibly etched into my memory from my first semester. "The Christian-heathen dichotomy was superimposed upon the existing prejudices of the civil-savage dichotomy." This was the moment of my conversion. It felt like being given the keys, the decryption code, to use in understanding everything from modern society to my own family.
Why is History relevant and important today?
Beyond the obvious perils of repeating itself, I think history is just good intellectual and operational practice. In any organization, you're problem solving and asking the same questions: who are the stakeholders, what are their interests, what are the impacts of a decision, will it hold up long term, what biases are you bringing to the situation... you may be asking is it just and reasonable, or, is it minimally costly and maximally productive, is it good for people, is it good for the planet... I believe a study of history gives anyone an excellent framework for approaching these questions and is replete with examples of what could go wrong.
What is something students considering majoring in History should know?
My advice would be to dig as deep as you can on what drives or interests you, and think ahead about some different directions you might take your career and how you can use your selection of research topics to become an expert in whatever your "thing" may be.
What are you up to now? In what ways did being a history major help you after graduation?
I work in energy commodities with a focus on natural gas, power, and carbon. My work has quantitative elements, a strong regulatory/legal element, and keeps me tuned in to energy markets, particularly gas and carbon offset or emissions trading. I was always able to plug my interests in natural resources, expansion/dispossession, and cultural conflict into my research as a history major, so I find I'm often able to think about land use, energy and ESG issues with context that is rare among my engineer and economist colleagues. The History program also left me very well prepared for the incredible amount of writing, qualitative analysis, and independent learning I have needed to do in my career.