Interview: Climate activist parks cars on her lawn for the Minnesota State Fair

As the streets get busier and parking lots fill up because of the Minnesota State Fair, some will be looking for a place to park their cars in surrounding neighborhoods. They may even end up driving onto climate activist Tina Clark's lawn.

Clark is one of many homeowners who live near the fairgrounds and open their gardens to paying customers every August.

Clark's day job is as a community resilience consultant fighting climate change, so she never imagined she'd be putting gas-guzzling cars on her lawn. But when she left her previous job in 2017 and moved to Minnesota to help her mother, she sold her car and found a house on a bus route. That house happened to be not far from the Falcon Heights Fairgrounds.

“My neighbors said, 'So you're looking forward to parking cars in your yard?'” Clark replied, “Why would I park cars in my yard?”

But she embraced it, especially when she realized it gave her a captive audience to talk about her passion. Now, when Minnesota's Great Get-Together happens, Clark provides parking for the day — and, if drivers are willing to listen, climate solutions for the future.

This conversation is part of our Job Interview series, where we talk to everyday Minnesotans about the rewards and challenges of their jobs. This interview has been lightly edited for style and clarity. Click on the audio player to hear the original version.

Official title: Community Resilience Consultant

What I actually do during the State Fair: I park cars in my yard for the Minnesota State Fair. I don't leave this place for 12 days.

A great day at work: I have solar panels on my house, installed heat pumps, am super insulated and use 100 percent electricity. I love telling hundreds of people every year about it and showing them what they can do too. But my number one priority is to take care of people and their cars.

A not so great day at work: Standing in the heat and rain. It's really tiring and I don't make that much money. But I love helping to organize the party.

What I learned: I really enjoy welcoming the diversity of our entire region into my garden. And I don't ask for much. I ask for as little as I can without upsetting my neighbors. And if you ask for too little, people think there's something wrong with your garden.