For Shireen Fathi, volunteering with Raritan Headwaters started with a single day outside the office. Nearly a decade later, it has grown into Board service, annual RBC employee volunteer days, and a lasting commitment to clean water and local conservation.
Shireen, Director of Corporate Banking at RBC Capital Markets, was first introduced to RHA in 2017 by her then-manager, Dick Smith, who remains closely connected to the organization today as RHA’s Treasurer. Since then, Shireen has helped bring RBC colleagues into the watershed for hands-on volunteer projects including stream restoration, tree planting, invasive species removal, and cleanups.
Her piece below was originally written for an internal RBC feature on volunteering in nature. We’re grateful to Shireen for allowing us to share it with the RHA community, and for capturing so clearly why time spent outside, working together for a healthier environment, can be so meaningful.
Left to right: Dick Smith, Ben Lennon, and Shireen Fathi volunteering with Raritan Headwaters Association.
“I’ve always cared deeply about environmental conservation, which is why some of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had at RBC have taken place outside the office. I was introduced to Raritan Headwaters Association, a nonprofit focused on protecting clean water and watersheds across New Jersey, in 2017 by my first manager, Richard Smith, who still serves on the organization’s Board of Trustees. Around the same time, my colleague Benjamin Lennon invited me to an event for the Billion Oyster Project, a nonprofit working to restore oyster reefs and improve the health of the New York Harbor. What started as volunteering with both organizations grew into long-term involvement, and today I serve on the Board of Trustees of Raritan Headwaters Association and on the Young Leadership Committee of Billion Oyster Project.
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to organize annual volunteer days for RBC employees with both organizations. Through these events, colleagues might spend the day restoring streams, planting trees, and removing invasive species with Raritan Headwaters Association, or cleaning oyster shells and building reef structures with Billion Oyster Project. Every volunteer day includes an opportunity to learn about the local environment and the history of the area, making the experience both educational and impactful.
Working in banking, much of my time is spent in meetings, on calls, and in front of a screen. Volunteering outdoors gives me an opportunity to step away from the desk, slow down, and reconnect with nature in a tangible way. Whether I’m kayaking down a stream collecting trash in rural New Jersey, or taking a ferry to Governors Island to clean oyster shells, I always leave feeling more energized and grounded than when I arrived.
I think there’s something powerful about seeing the direct impact of your efforts. Environmental challenges can often feel overwhelming, but volunteering reminds me that meaningful progress happens through small actions repeated over time. Spending a day outdoors improving a local ecosystem alongside colleagues creates a deeper connection to the places where we live and work and reminds us that we all have a role to play in protecting them.
Shireen Fathi volunteering with Billion Oyster Project, helping restore oyster reefs and support a healthier New York Harbor.
Beyond the environmental impact, I’ve always appreciated how these experiences bring people together. Colleagues from across RBC who might never otherwise cross paths spend the day working side-by-side, restoring the health of our local communities, building relationships, and making a tangible impact. The feedback is always incredibly positive, and one of the most common questions I get after an event is, “When is the next one?” It’s become a great way for people to connect, learn something new, and contribute to causes that matter.
These partnerships also reflect RBC’s longstanding commitment to environmental stewardship. Through RBC Foundation USA, we’ve supported Raritan Headwaters Association since 2017. Our relationship with Billion Oyster Project goes back even further – RBC provided a seed grant in 2011 when the organization was still an idea being developed at the New York Harbor School and later became its first official corporate donor. I’m grateful RBC has given me the opportunity to not only support causes that matter to me personally, but also to help introduce colleagues to organizations and environmental initiatives that have become an important part of my life.”
-Shireen Fathi
Thank you, Shireen, for all you do to support clean water, healthy watersheds, and hands-on environmental stewardship!
RHA is deeply grateful to Shireen for her dedication, leadership, and years of volunteer service. Through her Board service and her ongoing work connecting RBC colleagues with hands-on conservation opportunities, Shireen has helped strengthen our watershed community and inspire more people to take action for clean water.
RHA is also grateful for RBC Foundation USA’s partnership and support of our Environmental Leaders Academy, which gives high school juniors and seniors from under-resourced communities opportunities for mentoring, workshops, and hands-on field experiences focused on environmental careers, climate change, environmental justice, and resource protection. RBC Capital Markets highlighted that partnership and the Academy’s impact in this feature: Raritan Headwaters Helps Students Explore Environmental Careers.
Want to experience what Shireen describes firsthand? RHA welcomes corporate volunteer groups, individual volunteers, citizen scientists, and community partners. Reach out to our Volunteer & Outreach team to schedule a stream cleanup, planting day, or other hands-on project for your team.
