In our Sanctuaries series, creative leaders and achievers
reveal the special places where they go to think, relax and be inspired.
A graduate of Harvard University and Oxford University, Sarita James
has always been a high achiever. But she also wanted to make a social
impact in her professional life. Now CEO of Embark,
a technology company that helps fill seats at colleges and universities
with students of diverse backgrounds, she helps students from all over
the world access college education.
James’s experience working for McKinsey, Microsoft, Citigroup and the
Small Business Association under the Obama administration has been
influential on her strategy for Embark as she works toward taking the
inefficiencies out of the college application process. Under her
leadership, Embark made more than $3 million in revenue and processed
500,000-plus student applications last year.
With three young children at home and a husband who also works in the
tech industry, she says finding time to reconnect and decompress is
tricky, but she finds peace at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
Q. Why is the Brooklyn Botanic Garden so special to you?
James: The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is one of my
favorite places to decompress. I was born in Brooklyn, and my parents
took me to the garden as a baby. Now I return regularly for visits with
my parents, my husband and our three small children. One of my college
friends from our small band of female computer scientists at Harvard
recently held her wedding in the garden, so I associate it with family,
friends and natural beauty.
Q. What are your favorite spots in the garden?
James: The garden is a wonderful place for children
to play. I love watching my boys run through the Bluebell Wood, which is
planted with more than 45,000 Spanish bluebell flowers. My toddler
daughter likes sitting near the water and watching the goldfish in the
Lily Pool Terrace.
For my parents, the Tropical Pavilion is a nostalgic reminder of the
plants they grew up with in South India. My husband is partial to the
walkways of the Osborne Garden, where he can stare up at the wisteria as
he walks under the pergolas. And I enjoy the delicate live sculpture of
the potted trees at the Bonsai Museum, although I’ve never had the
green thumb to keep a bonsai tree of my own alive.
When you get to the garden, what do you do first to decompress?
James: My husband and I both run tech companies, so
much of our workdays can be very planned out. It’s a refreshing break
coming to the garden and letting the kids decide, right then, where we
are going and when we move on. We usually head to the garden right after
breakfast on a weekend morning, get lunch at the cafe, and then head
home for afternoon nap time — sometimes not just for the kids!
One thing I really like about the Brooklyn Botanic Garden is that
they have put in the extra effort to welcome all visitors. There are
free admissions hours, so everyone in the community can visit. There’s
also a Fragrance Garden specifically designed for the sight-impaired
that has plants with interesting textures to feel and unusual fragrances
to smell.
Q. When was the last time you were there, and was there a particular reason you visited or spent time there?
James: Most recently we visited the weekend after
the big Sakura Matsuri festival celebrating Japanese culture and the
cherry blossoms. It might have seemed like an anticlimactic time to
visit since the trees were quite bare. But flower petals covered much of
the lawn under the cherry trees, and the kids stomped around in them as
if they were this bright pink snow. Seasonal gardens remind me that, at
any particular moment, there’s always something to savor.
Q. What’s the biggest creative breakthrough you’ve had at the garden?
James: I can’t claim to have had a creative
breakthrough in the garden, but I can say I always come away from it
refreshed. Outside of my tech work and family time, I enjoy writing
personal essays. Sometimes the sights, sounds and smells of the garden
bring back memories of quiet moments from years before that I then
include in my stories.
Editor’s note: This interview has been edited and condensed.
To see more spaces where creative leaders go to find inspiration, visit Sanctuaries.
Abigail Bassett is a freelance journalist and editor-in-chief of
the lifestyle and luxury site c-ntrl.com. She lives in Los Angeles.
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