After growing up in a big city and spending time farming, Anastasiia Savchenko decided to study sustainable design at the university level, and build a career as a sustainability trained engineer. We hope that you’ll be inspired by her passion for nature that began since her childhood years, and share her story with the young people in your life.
Why did you decide to get a sustainability related masters degree?
I was born and raised in a Ukrainian city that became very industrial. I recall seeing clouds of emissions in the sky, and pollution in our city’s river. I also come from an engineering family and was planning on being one as well. However, living in such a polluted city made me rethink engineering’s value to society.
I chose to get a M.S. in Sustainable Design because it’s cross functional and you can choose your own path within the degree. People from all backgrounds come together to work on the same project. For instance, when developing green buildings, you need an educator, architect, and engineer in a single team. The sustainability development market needs people with diverse backgrounds. Each team member brings their own competencies and experiences—offering something different to one project. It’s a collaborative experience that enriches the community.
Have you always been passionate about the environment?
When I was growing up, Ukraine was a Soviet Union society so our access to technology was limited. I spent all of my free time outside. My parents would send me to my grandmother’s village to help care for their vegetables and livestock. Every family in the village would do the same. Our stores didn’t have enough food to supply everyone in the villages so whatever each family had came from the Earth.
I learned through this childhood experience that Earth is Mother Nature. I was able to see that whatever we had it gave us. Just like with my Mother, I wanted it to live long and be healthy. I understood how important it was that we preserve and take care of nature.
What do you hope to achieve during your career?
I currently work with K-12 schools in Virginia as a Solutions Development Engineer. My goal for the future is to bring sustainable solutions to businesses by developing green buildings. While businesses work on implementing big energy solutions, people also need incentives to change their behavior. For example, while heating system companies are working to lower emissions, we can help the environment by changing our behavior and consuming less heat. I plan to build tools that encourage people to change their consumption choices and make a difference in their community on an individual level.
Many people struggle to understand what sustainability is and why it’s important. How do you get people excited about sustainability?
We have so many different definitions for what sustainability is. As an engineer, my goal is to show people why it’s important through practical examples. I help Virginia school districts, who typically are focused on finances, understand how they can save on their bills by being more energy efficient. When you share specific examples of how reducing emissions is relevant in economic terms, decision makers are more inclined to change their organization’s energy investments.
A lot of people, as business professionals, don’t care about the polar bears in the Arctic, but knowing that paying for gas is not the cheapest option may be important to their business. My goal is to help businesspeople understand the long-term and immediate benefits of adopting more sustainable (in many cases cost-efficient) business practices.
Do you have any advice for students?
The sustainability movement needs people who are trained across multiple disciplines. People who are eager to make improvements while being flexible to the environment around them are best suited for this type of work.
The best thing you can do as a student is:
- Stay aware and always be learning;
- Be open to different opinions of others;
- See problems as opportunities for improvement;
- Always try to improve yourself, because this will improve the world around you.
The post Not Growing Up With Much Inspired This Female Engineer to Study Sustainability appeared first on Obama Green Charter High School.