Summer Quarter: "Beast Of Burden"- The Rolling Stones
Welcome to The College Of Environmental Engineering!
I had previously been focusing on environmental impacts of the materials, production process, and longevity of high-performance outdoor sports equipment (namely sail design, sailboat hulls, skis, and surfboards). While exploring applications of more eco-friendly, enduring designs with a goal to minimize outdoor enthusiasts’ global footprint, but I found myself pulled more towards the environment surrounding the gear, rather than the gear itself.
I knew I wanted to realign my academic and experiential education, so I embarked on a personally-led observational study and surveying of the Pennine Glaciers last summer.
Of the 14 glaciers amongst the 38 four-thousand-meter peaks, I traversed the Theodul, Furgg, and Matterhorn. I spoke with Mountaineers, Climatologists, and Cultural Shepherds atop the Monte Rosa Massif and met past team members from the Paul Scherrer Institute, the Institute of Polar Sciences, and the Ca' Foscari University of Venice's collaborative scientific mission to safeguard the heritage of the Valais Alps. In 2020, they had drilled into the glacier plateau below the Grand Combin summits and were no farther than 20 meters before reaching a layer soaked in meltwater. It was within those conversations– the analysis of Ice Memory, the anecdotal experiences of glacial collapse from German climbers, and the tales of the demons, witches, cauldrons, and culture shaped by the glaciers– that I knew I needed to participate in hydrological research.
Honors India: Social Entrepreneurship & Population Health
This Early Fall Start, I had the amazing opportunity to Study abroad in India (Bengaluru & Ladakh) with the UW Honors Program, Professor Alissa Bilfield (Nutritional Sciences), Professor Akhtar Badshah (nonprofit & social development), the Ashoka Foundation, the Naropa Fellowship, & a team of unbelievable UW undergrads
Portraits of Entrepreneurship
Additional Information
During my time collaborating with the Ashoka and Naropa Fellowships based out of Bangalore and Ladakh (respectively), I decided to document the faces within the frameworks we were confronting via portrait photography. Just simple point and shoot, black and white, one pic for warm up and the second to catch an unsuppressed laugh or smile, or glint in the eyes. Akhtar referred to these as my “mugshots.”
The faces fell to many ends of the spectrum: CEO, intern, scientist, stakeholders, etc. But more so they captured different ideologies behind our shared moment in exploring Social Entrepreneurship in India.
This will be a 4 part series, so stay tuned to the story!