Students 2021

Food has always been my passion and I have used cooking as a way to express my creative side. This past year I become involved with Food Fighters at UNF and was able to see the positive impact the program has had in food insecure areas and home bound seniors around Jacksonville. Food Fighters ignited my passion for community work, and I am excited to be a part of the ECLP to learn more about the environmentally conscious programs in Jacksonville. I hope to apply the skills I will learn in the ECLP to serve my community through community health and dietetics.

My senior year of college is about finishing strong and making lasting connections. I am excited to work with the Environmental Leadership Program because I have always loved spending time outdoors, camping, backpacking, and enjoying mountaintop views. I have been developing my skills and experience as a future health professional and lifelong learner, and I am beginning to understand the vast amount of ways I can make an impact regarding conservation. I am excited to get involved with my community to protect and advocate for our environment.

Growing up in Florida and having access to the water has instilled in me a passion for the environment and marine ecosystem. I have been able to experience the state’s beauty, and desire to protect it for future generations to enjoy. I am pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering and a certificate for specialization in Coastal Engineering. My hobbies have taught me skills relating to construction, electrical, boating, and most recently I have been involved with classic cars, with my personal project being a custom built 1964 Ford F100 pickup truck. I have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge both in classes and working on projects, and I hope to one day put my abilities to use relating to environmental conservation and design.

I’m currently a sophomore at UNF. I am originally from sunny South Florida by the Everglades. The main focus on my ELP project is more awareness for pollution. Since I can remember, I’ve always volunteered for things that deal with the environment; for example, I love doing beach clean-ups and park clean-ups. I also love to paint to express my creative side.

I was introduced to the Environmental Center Leadership Program through the hick’s honors college in my freshman year. In honors, I took a class called self and society which encouraged us to tackle an environmental issue and come up with a solution. I, along with my group, decided to focus on composting at UNF to address climate change. I wanted to progress this idea, so I applied for the ECLP. The ECLP will help me to develop leadership skills and assist me in the future as a researcher. An interesting fact about me is that I’m bilingual. My mom is from Moscow, so I know how to speak Russian.

I choose to participate in the Environmental Center Leadership Program (ECLP) to gain a better understanding of the different environmental issues our community is facing. My goal for this program is to gain professional and leadership skills and have a positive impact on my community. In my free time I volunteer, spend time outdoors and enjoy traveling to new places.

I am currently obtaining a communication and environmental studies dual degree. After graduation, I am interested in furthering my education in the field of environmental law. From an early age, I have been interested in the environment and have held strong interpersonal skills, leading me to the dual degree I am pursuing today. I have focused on growing an environmental advocacy club, through which I have been able to sharpen many of my skills. I am confident in my ability to succeed and to help others succeed. I look forward to the future and participating in the ECLP Program.

As a senior, I am very excited about making my last year in college impactful with the ECLP. I have always loved nature, but now I am passionate about protecting our planet and the people and animals on it and I hope to make it a central part of my future career. My favorite things include learning, reading, listening to pop music, traveling, and thrifting.

I am currently a sophomore where I am studying in hopes to be involved in the health care field. I love to get involved within my campus by joining clubs and volunteering for my community where by joining the Environmental Center Leadership Program not only aligns with a lot of my goals and values but found that this opportunity will allow me to express the importance of our Earth and impact our community positively. What I do during my free time is run with my dog and currently trying to learn how to surf!

From the beginning of high school, I already knew I wanted to make an impact on my community. For years I explored options of service – being active in Habitat for Humanity, volunteering for my local public library, becoming a counselor for the Crisis Text Line, and much more. I so much enjoyed making a positive impact on the communities I was a part of that I continue to serve in all different kinds of ways even now. Coming into college and working through my major as a biology student, I was able to combine my passion for science and my want to help my community by getting involved in environmental advocacy. The Environmental Center Leadership Program (ECLP) is a perfect example of an opportunity for me to both grow and make a difference. Not only do I get to partner up with a sponsor to further my outreach and instrument real change in my community, but I get to take on a leadership role in doing so. Moving between Lithuania and Finland for 8 years, I moved to the US in 2008. I am a native Russian speaker and look to increase representation and involvement of my culture in medical and research professional fields.

I am an eighteen-year-old studying Sociology and Political Science at the University of North Florida. I believe myself to be a hard worker. I have perpetually put the needs of others before myself, and have proven to employers, supervisors, peers, and family that I am both trustworthy and responsible. I greatly value my education, and I put my best effort into my jobs, activities, and acquisition of knowledge. My desire to work with the Environmental Center Leadership Program stems from my care for the environment and serving my community through deliberate action. I hope to be paired with a fantastic business partner within our local Jacksonville community that will teach me about their interaction with the local economy and how they are impacting the environment. I would also like to learn about their direction with their company and how local, state, and federal policies affect their ability to perform meaningful work.

In the past year, since attending the University of North Florida, I have grown a new compassion for volunteer work that I did not know I had in me. I started volunteering with UNF Food Recovery and began to see the impact that it has in our community! My goal is to share my passion for healthy living through food. I hope to impact my community through helping to live a healthier life.

I am participating in the Environmental Center Leadership Program to help me develop my leadership and networking skills to prepare me for my future career in helping the environment. I have grown up hiking and appreciating nature as well as enjoying various creative pursuits including drawing, painting, sewing, acting, and playing instruments. I am also pursuing a minor in art and hope to utilize my creative talents in helping to protect the environment. I am excited to get to know fellow students, community partners, and others in the community who are passionate about the environment and to make a positive impact in the community.

In the spring semester of my freshman year I was fortunate enough to be accepted in the Environmental Center Leadership Program(ECLP). My passion to help the environment made me very interested in being a part of this program. I began learning more about the program to work with a community partner with a project. Due to my extreme interest in helping my environment I wrote a children’s character book about climate change. My book addresses the topic, climate change, in an easy way for little kids to understand. It also explains the bad habits that affect the environment negatively and tells them how to help our environment positively.

I am a Biomedical major at the University of North Florida, but I have always had a passion for the environment. I am fortunate enough to have been able to live in close proximity to the ocean my entire life, resulting in me developing a deep connection with it. Yet, the beach is only a small aspect of nature that I thoroughly appreciate. With the help of the Environmental Center Leadership Program I intend on creating a project that will have a positive impact resonating far beyond my local community.

For my Fall and Spring semester, I have received the ECLP scholarship and joined this amazing program. I am so grateful for this opportunity and am looking forward to completing this program. I am extremely passionate about saving the Earth and keeping it clean and sustainable. It is my goal to use the least amount of waste as possible and to try and make an impact for our world’s plastic use. I am hoping this program can help me make my impact on the world and give me the tools and skills to be a better leader. A couple fun facts about me are that I love to travel, I am a vegetarian, and I love Disney. I appreciate good food and traveling to new places so I can see the beautiful land that Earth has to offer. I also love Disney because it is very easy to watch and so comforting.

My name is Maria Pugliese and I am a sophomore majoring in Electrical Engineering. In the future, I would like to combine my interests in sustainability with engineering for a potential career in sustainable development. Although I am interested in everything related to environmentalism, I want to focus my time on sustainability and renewable energy. I am always open to exploring new opportunities and my goal is to improve my leadership and communication skills by giving back to my community!

Hello, my name is Sophia Bertolino I’m from Boca Raton Florida. I am currently majoring in political science and criminal justice and I am minoring in law. I am expected to graduate in spring of 2023. I am currently a sophomore in college. I am involved in the environmental center leadership program and I am a member of alpha chi omega. This is my 5th semester here at the University of North Florida.

My name is Waheed Khalili, I am a second year undergraduate student here at the University of North Florida. Though I was originally born in London, I’ve lived in Jacksonville for a majority of my life and consider it to be my home. After university, I have aspirations of attending medical school and working as a primary care doctor in impoverished areas.