What inspired you to work for The GREEN Program?
The GREEN Program provides participants with more than your average study abroad. TGP recognizes that participants want (and need) an experience that will not only help them grow personally, but also academically and professionally. Not only are all TGP programs fully accredited and focus on career enhancement opportunities, but the TGP Team has gone the extra mile to ensure their participants succeed in their personal, academic, and professional goals post-program.
Through The GREEN Alumni Network, participants join a community of more than 3,000 sustainability-focused young professionals, gain access to weekly career updates with job and internship opportunities, continue their TGP travels on exclusive Alumni programs, and much more. All of this is to say that as a recent graduate myself when I first joined TGP, I not only saw the incredible value of the TGP in-program experience, but I was also incredibly impressed with the post-program benefits for participants.
Enjoying the fresh mountain air. —Rocky Mountain National Park
Describe a typical day at work.
As the Student Success Coordinator, I work directly with all of the accepted TGP participants. I have the opportunity to talk with students and young professionals to learn about their education abroad goals and to discuss everything TGP-related, including daily itineraries of our programs in Iceland, Peru, Japan, and Nepal, leveraging academic credit, resources for financial assistance, and more.
What is your favorite part of your job?
Every day I talk with participants who are passionate about making an impact on their communities, exploring new cultures, and striving to expand their comfort zone. Every day I feel more assured about the future of our planet, as it will be in the hands of these innovative, impact-driven people. These are a few of my (many) favorite things.
In the Land of Smiles. —Chiang Mai, Thailand
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
In my undergraduate career, I studied Anthropology with a Sustainability Leadership Minor at Pennsylvania State University. Although I loved my studies at Penn State, the lessons I learned outside of the traditional classroom (such as my education abroad experience in Chiang Mai, Thailand and my 30-day backpacking trip in Wyoming) truly shaped me and my passions. I relate with our participants who are perhaps seeking hands-on opportunities that aren’t available through traditional education, or who are stressed about the lack of direction and purpose in their degree and future career paths. I understand our participants nerves, passions, and obstacles, as I have gone through many of them myself.
What makes The GREEN Program special?
The GREEN Program provides short-term, accredited programs in Iceland, Peru, Japan, and Nepal. By using the world as our classroom, our model expertly balances sustainability-focused course work, exclusive industry exposure, and bucket-list adventures all within only 8-10 days. We specialize in providing access to leading industry facilities, from Iceland’s largest Geothermal Facility to Fukushima’s Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.
What is the mission of TGP and how do you continue to work toward it?
The GREEN Program provides a new model for education abroad driven by a desire to provide purposeful, hands-on industry exposure at a fraction of the time and cost. Creating for students by students, our participants are our greatest inspiration, and we strive to make the program more accessible through university partnerships and funding opportunities, and to innovate through new programs and career enhancement opportunities.
TGP Team repping rePurpose, our upcycled merchandise line. —Philadelphia, PA
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
I hope that students take away a new sense of purpose behind their passions, a skill set to create a positive impact in their communities, and the knowledge that they have a network full of resources to help them reach their career goals.
What questions do participants often ask you, and how do you typically respond?
Participant questions range from program itineraries, to flight logistics, to funding opportunities, to program outcomes. While we have a comprehensive program package available for each accepted student (which includes information on the former questions), I also have more detailed feedback to provide. For example, if a student has questions about funding, we will discuss the best contacts to touch base with at their university and the best methods to talk funding opportunities, as well as alternative resources utilized by past students.
Why is it important for people to travel abroad and experience new cultures?
Traveling abroad and experiencing new cultures helps us expand our perspectives and our empathetic abilities by learning from other people's practices and stretching our comfort zones.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
To have a meaning travel experience, I believe my interaction with local ecosystems and communities is collaborative rather than intrusive, my dollar will support local economies, and my perspective has been broadened through local traditions and customs.
