This is me in my workstation at the library as I complete a response to Jim Morris, the AVP of University Operations
Hidden in the Main Building of St. Edward’s University is a small office housed under the President called the Office of Sustainability. It is a small staff, two full-time employees (Cristina Bordin and Alex Hill) and three interns this fall semester. It is amazing to me how tiny it is, especially because I spend most of the day working remotely as do the other interns in the office.
The office itself serves as an information center for students on different ways to get involved and how to make your lifestyle more sustainable in nature. Weekly newsletters and blog posts are updated, upcoming events are highlighted, or people’s accomplishments are written out to inspire others and update students on what graduates are doing. Having written a couple different posts for the office, I find it really delightful to share my experiences with others, especially regarding environmental science and my travels abroad!
A typical day for myself is not particularly long; toward the beginning of the semester I would work three hour days Monday to Friday, but now since I’m nearing the completion of my work its half of that. My official title is “Greenhouse Gas Analyst Intern,” which sounds fancier than it is! I’m responsible for calculating the Greenhouse Gas footprint of St. Edward’s University for the years 2017-2018 and 2018-2019. Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are gases released with the combustion of fossil fuels and are responsible for the warming of the climate felt worldwide. As a University that bases one of the pillars of founding on social justice, it is the responsibility of St. Edward’s to contribute to a more just climate in any way in which they are able, which is where I come in. It is important to know where you are as a University before you can begin fixing issues, and so I am creating an update on the performance of the University.
I collect information from a variety of staff on campus, which is why it was very important for me to learn how to write professional emails and communicate effectively with individuals in the University. It was a surprise to me when I found out that I will be the first person to use the new carbon calculator tool, SIMAP (Sustainability Indicator Management & Analysis Platform). How challenging it became to teach myself about this new tool, but a highly rewarding experience overall.
In addition to collecting and compiling data for this report, I will update the user manual for my job, create blog posts for the office, or conduct interviews with staff to gain the information I need.
Something that surprised me was just how much there was a change when Pavilions came onto the grid and how that shot up energy use and fertilizer use! I got to witness that change in one year and it was really interesting. Getting to handle raw data on a larger scale was something I had not done before, so it is good training for me to use in later occupations once I graduate.
Something that I am slightly nervous about is that on November 15th I will be presenting to the Sustainability Committee on campus about my findings and what the results yielded. This was something that both my advisor and my supervisor suggested that I complete so that I can practice public speaking skills and be prepared to answer questions about the work done on the Greenhouse Gas Inventory.
Overall I could not have found a better group of supervisors to work with, and I hope to continue to be involved with the office even after this internship is over in December.
Here are some sample posts I have done for the Office for further information:
https://www.stedwards.edu/sustainability/blog/study-abroad-numbers
https://www.stedwards.edu/sustainability/blog/meet-our-greenhouse-gas-analyst-intern
