Thank you for considering a donation to our Spark campaign! Below are the stories of four students who served as Sustainability Fellows in the past, and who were able to make a positive community impact thanks to your donations. All donations from this Great Give campaign will go toward supporting our future Sustainability Fellows. 

Nia Ogletree 

In Summer 2023, Nia worked with Sustainable Tallahassee to craft impactful position statements on Solar Energy and Storage to educate the community and drive positive change. 

Nia worked with the organization Sustainable Tallahassee to craft statements that were accurate and compelling, as the statements inform public opinion, hold institutions accountable, and contribute to conversations that shape society's trajectory.

“This opportunity opened up the potential for community partnerships and networking, and having those contacts through Fellows is helpful as I know they will be very beneficial when I graduate or at any point throughout my career,” said Nia.

Carly McGovern 

In Summer 2023, Carly worked with the Leon County Office of Sustainability to enhance their Surplus program.

This initiative aimed to find sustainable avenues for repurposing or recirculating surplus office materials within the County, aligning with their commitment to responsible resource management. 

“I’ve known my entire life that I want to work in sustainability, and fellows is an excellent way to experience a specific type of sustainability work for a short period. You get to network, problem-solve,  and experience what the office is like, which is important for both the partner and the student,” said Carly 

Marion Knowles

In Summer 2023, Marion worked with Sustainable Campus on a critical project: gathering data for FSU’s Annual Environmental Metrics Report. 

For this project, Marion worked closely with FSU Facilities. This initiative specifically revolved around centralizing environmental resource consumption data into a unified document, streamlining the recording process, and aiding Florida State University in minimizing its carbon footprint. 

“Being a Fellow has already done so much for my future! Fellows do important work giving back to the community, and working with people who offered such great support and always relayed information to me quickly helped me to give back and make our campus a better place,” said Marion.
 

Kolby Gawlik 

In Spring 2023, Kolby worked with the Leon County Office of Sustainability to explore the feasibility of implementing centralized waste stations in county facilities, a groundbreaking endeavor for the region.

By leveraging online data, insights from other institutions, and knowledge from the county's facilities staff, Kolby analyzed the pros, cons, and potential barriers to implementation.  

“When I was looking for an opportunity to get my feet wet, the Fellows program was warm to that. All I needed was a will, want, and passion to do it. Fellows gave me that opportunity to get started with that foundational sustainability knowledge, and further myself and the community” said Kolby.