Shi Summer Sustainability Fellows Spread Know-How Across Region, Industries

Each summer, Furman University’s Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities helps a handful of students from various majors and backgrounds find internships in the Greenville area. They’re called Shi Sustainability Fellows, and this year 16 of them, with majors ranging from politics and international affairs to physics to French to (wait for it) sustainability science, cast across the region, helping organizations conserve energy, reduce waste and grow healthier communities.

Read excerpts of Instagram posts below from a few of the fellows. Check out the blog to read more from students, and go to the student fellows website to learn more, including how students can apply to be one of four fellows this upcoming fall semester. Fellowships are open to all majors and students of every class.

Claudia Joyce ’26, an intern at the Greenville Zoo, takes a recycling and trash audit as part of sustainability practices at the zoo on Friday. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

Hello! I am Claudia Joyce ’26, the Conservation and Education Intern at the Greenville Zoo. I have loved animals since I was young. The Greenville Zoo helps me apply global perspectives to conservation through my French and sustainability double majors. Above all, I have enjoyed being surrounded by animals and kids this summer to empower younger generations for sustainable change.

My job involves animal handling, managing Zoo Camp, jumpstarting sustainability initiatives, graphic design and even the occasional keeper talk. My biggest project has been improving waste management at the zoo. I experienced the dedication and passion of every staff member and feel proud to work alongside a group of like-minded individuals!

Success Mulbah interned with the City of Greenville this summer, inspecting streams and learning how local governments work. The experience will help in her quest to become a landscape architect. Photo by the Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities.

I’m Success T. Mulbah ’26. I’m majoring in sustainability science with a minor in data analytics. My career goal is to become a landscape architect, and this summer I’m gaining valuable experience through an internship as an environmental engineer fellow with the City of Greenville’s engineering department. My internship involves a variety of tasks, but my primary focus is on conducting stream inspections throughout Greenville.

I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with city employees, gaining insights into the intricacies of local government, sewage systems, floodplain management and stormwater management. It’s been eye-opening, showing me how local government functions and the interconnectedness of various departments, including landscape architects.

I absolutely love this fellowship! It’s a fantastic learning experience that allows me to contribute to addressing the city’s daily challenges. The internship has also helped me develop my networking skills and solidify my career aspirations in landscape architecture.

Aubin Vertueux Dzossa Bontse ’27 is this summer’s Shi Institute Climate Resilience Fellow, working with the institute’s applied research team. Photo by the Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities.

My name is Aubin Vertueux Dzossa Bontse ’27 and I am a physics major from Yaoundé, Cameroon. I am serving as the Shi Institute’s climate resilience fellow this summer, working closely with institute’s applied research team to help build climate solutions in a few areas in South Carolina designated by the federal government as Community Disaster Resilience Zones (CDRZs). As the climate resilience fellow, one of my key priorities is to ensure equity and active community engagement in those areas.

So far, one of my main tasks has been documenting all the guides and toolkits for building resilience and identifying how we can use each in our work. I then helped create a database to easily identify suitable guides and toolkits for future projects. Additionally, I have been developing rubrics to assess the quality of resilience plans. Once completed, these rubrics will help create a model resilience plan that the Shi Institute can use to guide communities in developing their own resilience strategies.

I have had a great experience so far and learned a lot, from impactful resilience-building strategies to geospatial analysis techniques such as robust scaling. I know I still have many exciting things to learn, such as GIS techniques, and I look forward to what’s next.

Shi Fellow Andres Ospina ’24, left, talks with Sam Blumin, chief of staff at Trueline GVL, about sustainability practices at the venue on July 8, 2024. The Holtzclaw family endowed several Shi fellowships with their gifts. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

What’s up?! I’m Andres Ospina ’24, a Furman alum and the sustainability fellow at Trueline GVL! Trueline GVL is a new music and entertainment venue in the West End. Over the summer, I’m helping Trueline find various ways to incorporate sustainability into its venue and overall operations. For instance, I’m researching different ways to make events zero waste and ensure the building will be as energy efficient as possible.

I’m also meeting with sustainability professionals in the Carolinas, including director of Make Greenville Greener Sheryl Guarniero and Pierce Schwalb, the director of sustainability at Sierra Nevada Brewery in Asheville! I learned all about how the brewery was designed to be as sustainable as possible and I hope to incorporate some of their strategies into the design of Trueline’s new venue. I’m looking forward to continuing my work this summer!

Anna Hicks ’25, an intern at Pacolet Milliken in downtown Greenville, works at her desk on Wednesday. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

My name is Anna Hicks ’25 and I am a politics and international affairs and economics double major. This summer I am working at Pacolet Milliken as an environmental, social, governance (ESG) fellow.

One of my main projects is to collect data on ESG practices in the office and develop short- and long-term goals for future implementation. I am also assisting with updating PM’s land holdings in the GIS database to prepare for a carbon sequestration analysis and working with a team on affordable housing and community developments across the Upstate.

I have learned a lot about corporate ESG strategies and how to balance sustainability with economic growth and development. I have also had the opportunity to attend fun events such as the BMW Pro Am Tournament and Company Day at Cedar Valley Farms. Working as a fellow has been a great experience so far!