Sustainability Fellows Bring Skills, Meaningful Solutions, and Joy to NH Organizations' Sustainability Projects
This summer marked our 18th cohort of the UNH Sustainability Fellowship! Nearly two decades of summers of impactful projects being led by our Fellows, supported by Mentors and Advisors, creating change at their host organizations from the summer and beyond.
This summer, 37 Fellows presented their final deliverables during the Fellowship Showcase, sharing the impact their work will have on their host organizations, communities and the state. From learning more about their projects such as tracking greenhouse gas emissions in Concord, NH, to analyzing impact investment opportunities, and exploring the value of third-party certification programs that align people, planet, and profit, this event is always one of our favorite days of the year.
One example of the kind of impact made this summer was seen in Koorosh Asadifakhr’s project (UNH Ph.D. candidate in Civil and Environmental Engineering '26) with NH-based company, EZ-Crete. Koorosh addressed two major environmental challenges: the high embodied carbon of concrete and the growing volume of waste plastic that ends up in oceans and landfills. This highly inventive project researched and identified the possibility of using waste plastic in concrete forms. Koorish estimates if EZ-Crete implements one proposed solution across its production, there would be an estimated annual savings of 184 tons of CO₂ and 351 tons of plastic diverted.
In a second example, UNH undergraduate, Caleigh Mullins (B.S. Environmental Engineering '27) worked with the Northern Forest Center, studying nine case studies of successful outdoor recreation projects across the region to inform and inspire future initiatives across New England. She completed a full report and highlighted notable trends, such as limiting access barriers, building trust, or utilizing existing assets. As Caleigh shared in her Showcase presentation,
“Overall, this resource created will serve as a foundation for telling these projects’ stories, sharing real examples of how other communities have created outdoor recreation assets, and inspiring future efforts.”
These are just two highlights from an incredible array of impact; be sure to check out the other projects and watch the Fellows’ presentations here.
We closed the Showcase with a quote that resonates deeply with the spirit of this program. In Ayana Elizabeth Johnson’s TED Talk, How to Find Joy in Climate Action, she says: “All too rarely are we asked to contribute our special talents, our superpowers, to climate solutions, and what a failing, for that would actually enable the radical changes that we need.” Our Fellows are doing exactly that, bringing their skills to the table, contributing to meaningful solutions, and finding joy in the process as we work toward a more resilient community and world.
And finally, we love the chance to celebrate welcoming this year's Fellows into our growing network of changemakers. One of the most beautiful aspects of this program is that the journey doesn’t end with the summer, it continues as we support one another in using our superpowers to solve challenges together in our communities, our state, and beyond.
Please join me in congratulating our incredible 2025 Fellows!
Interested in hosting a Fellow at your organization in summer 2026?
Register to join the info-session for organizations on September 23, 1–2 PM
Questions? Contact Alexis.Dwyer@unh.edu
