Bard graduate students will be helping companies and colleges save money and slow down global warming this summer. The Environmental Defense Fund has selected two students from the MS programs in Environmental Policy and two MBA in Sustainability students as Climate Corps Fellows. They will be embedded in leading organizations nationwide, providing expert hands-on support to manage and reduce both energy bills and pollution.
On the MBA side, Marianna Souza, MBA ’16 will be headed to Chicago to Baxter International, and Brooke Forde, MBA ’16 will stay in New York City to work with the Goddard Riverside Community Center. Representing the MS programs, Jillian Corley, MS ’15 will be working with the Alamo Community College system in San Antonio, and Christina Wildt, MS ’15 is headed to Hanover, NH where she will be working for Dartmouth College.
The highly competitive program selects around 60 graduate student fellows each year, from MBA, engineering and public policy programs. Last summer, dual-degree student Rochelle March MBA ’15 / MS ’15 served as a Climate Corps Fellow, where she helped develop a green construction program customized for new Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants. March researched energy efficient and sustainable construction methods and equipment to be integrated into Dunkin’s prototypical specifications as well as for Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants wishing to implement more green construction methods.
“EDF does an excellent job of preparing fellows and facilitating the program.” said March. “I loved working with Dunkin’ and having the opportunity to help them design an impactful initiative that will benefit the company and its many stakeholders.”
Christina Wildt’s work at Dartmouth will focus on design of a distributed, renewable energy system. “It seems as if Dartmouth has already picked the lowest hanging fruit, with a comprehensive approach to energy efficiency,” said Wildt. “I’m thrilled to help the college construct a plan to move into the future of energy management. I can’t wait to get started.”
The Bard Center for Environmental Policy believes that to solve environmental challenges and achieve sustainability in our institutions and in society, government and business policies must be grounded in the best available science. The Bard MBA in New York City focuses on the business case for sustainability. We train students to see how firms can integrate economic, environmental, and social objectives, the integrated bottom line, to create successful businesses that build a more sustainable world.