The 2021 Sustainability Fellowships once again embodied UNH’s commitment to our sustainability values. This summer’s integration of two formerly-distinct UNH summer sustainability internship programs under the umbrella of the UNH Sustainability Fellows program was an incredible success.
Making the region more sustainable, resilient, and equitable
The Fellowships supported significant greenhouse gas reductions, increased community resilience, and awareness and engagement around climate change and sustainability in communities, organizations and corporations across New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts.
Cultivating and training 21 emerging sustainability professionals
Seven undergraduate students and fourteen graduate students participated in this summer’s program with academic and career interests in environmental and public policy, urban planning, environmental conservation, environmental science, food and agricultural systems, women’s and gender studies, sustainability, business administration, marketing, finance, and mechanical engineering.
Emphasizing racial equity and social justice as a central tenet of all sustainability work
Nearly a third of the projects had deliverables explicitly related to furthering diversity, equity and inclusion—and all of the Fellows and host organizations were asked to, and supported in, considering the racial equity and social justice components of all of their work, starting in orientation and continuing through to final project presentations.
I am so grateful for this fellowship – I cannot even put into words how much I grew from this experience. This fellowship is so much more than a summer internship – it has given me confidence and prepared me for my new role as a Sustainability Specialist; it has provided me room to make mistakes, learn from them, and move forward; most of all, it has taught me about the depth of sustainability and has highlighted the importance of empathy and kindness. This fellowship is training students to make the world a better place, and I am so honored to be now an alumnus of this program. ~ Meg Maloney
2021 Host Sites, Fellows and Projects (see the final presentations here)
- EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (public sector - federal), Katharine Morris, Stakeholder Engagement in Toxic Chemicals
- Goodwill Northern New England (non-profit), Natalie Roach, Expansion of DEI
- Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission (public sector), Maggie Peard, Regional Coastal Resilience Planning and Innovative Engagement
- Root Capital (nonprofit), Flaam Hardy, Natural Climate Solutions for Agricultural Business
- Town of Concord, MA (public sector - municipal), Hannah Lyons-Cavazos, Financing Energy Efficiency and Electrification
- Burlington Electric Department (public sector - municipal utility), Kameice Francis, Advancing Multi-family Electric Vehicle Charging
- City of Keene (public sector - municipal), Jackie Harris, Water and Energy Benchmarking Program
- Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire (non-profit), Cassandra Bull, Video and Digital Content Creator
- New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility (nonprofit), Michael Pasciuto, Climate Action Challenge (2021 Josephine A. Lamprey Sustainability Fellow)
- New Hampshire Commission on Offshore Wind and Port Development (public sector – agency), Arianna Stokes, Gulf of Maine Offshore Wind Communications Development
- Northern Forest Center (nonprofit), Alexandra Ramey, Sustainable Rural Destination Development
- The Nature Conservancy (nonprofit), Madeline Peery, Inventorying Conservation Lands through GIS
- Oyster River Cooperative School District (public sector - K-12), Meg Maloney, Building a Sustainability Management Plan
- Town of Durham, NH (public sector - municipal), Cathy Fletcher, Land Use as an Aspect of Community Climate Action
- Seacoast Eat Local (nonprofit), Brielle Hirsch, Expanding Local Food Access Using SNAP Subscription Program
- Timberland (business – multi-national), Kathryn Rascoe, Values Messaging, Expanding our Community
- Unitil (business – energy company) Yadira Hernandez-Plascencia, Sustainability Reporting & Education
- Prime Buchholz LLC (business), Jill Durkin and Aliya Sarris, ESG and DEI Data Collection
- Lonza Biologics – (business- multi-national), Mattew Oriente, Corporate Citizenship Program
- ReVision Energy (business - energy), Lila Nelson, Climate Change Education and Lesson Planning
