University of North Carolina Environmental Studies Student | 2024 Molchanov & Taco Bell Liv Más Scholar
What a summer! Before it officially comes to a close, I'd like to reflect on some of the work I've completed over the last 3 months. Firstly, I had the opportunity to work with Joules Accelerator as a Business Development intern. This internship allowed me to gain experience conducting market scans of cleantech startups, working primarily in the grid-innovation space, using tools like Crunchbase and Linkedin. As I reviewed numerous companies, I would assess their partnership potential, taking note of funding raised, current funding round, TRL, etc. After this internship, I am interested in learning more about venture capital and how startups can leverage these funds to help advance their unique technologies. A central focal point of my research was on data centers, specifically learning how they will drastically increase energy demand, a metric that has remained stable for decades thanks to increases in energy efficiency. In response to this growth, companies are developing innovative solutions to creating more resilient and future-ready electricity grids nationwide. Some include, Dynamic Line Rating (DLR), Virtual Power Plants (VPP), and Advanced Distribution Management Systems (ADMS). Further, this internship allowed me to gain experience creating social media marketing materials for professional social media accounts. For example, I created a promotional carousel post for Joules's Instagram (and wrote an accompanying article) highlighting past startups Joules has partnered with that have received DOE funding. I loved how this project allowed me to get creative and practice my graphic design and communications experience, two skills I hope to further develop next semester. Big thanks to Ryan Rutledge, Bob Irvin, and Winter Wilson for all of their help this summer! Read more about my experience with Joules this summer on the UNC Institute for the Environment website! https://lnkd.in/e5Rfrdxa Aside from my internship, I'm proud to announce I completed The Greenhouse Gas Protocol's Corporate Value Chain Scope 3 Emissions Accounting course. I can now conduct a scope 3 analysis of a company's value chain with regard to company goals and stakeholders. I believe this will be a valuable skill as I continue to learn how companies can minimize their climate impact. Speaking of business, this summer I applied to the UNC' Kenan-Flagler Business School with the intent of pursuing a business minor. I won't know until later this fall what the future holds, but for now I can be proud of the work I put into the application. Looking forward to next semester as a Tarheel! 🐏
Environmental Studies Student at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
4moAmazing job Nicky!