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Meet our Summer Interns!

Bedford 2030’s summer interns are supporting clean energy in transportation and buildings, highlighting natural climate solutions, and developing ongoing communications. We are proud to welcome them to the team!

Liam Condon, 22 years old (Buildings and Transportation)

 I’m from Newton Massachusetts, just graduated from Vassar College, and am about to move to Chicago, IL. 
 
I wanted to work with Bedford 2030 to put my education into action working on climate policy in a personal, tangible way. I believe in the power of grassroots activism, and know that meaningful progress on climate issues requires participation from everybody, as well as meaningful policy changes on the state and national level. 
 I am personally most proud of my senior thesis titled: “For You and Your Country: How the Civilian Climate Corps Reconceptualizes Climate Policy” which advocates for climate policy that prioritizes the economic needs of traditionally underserved populations to enlist them in the fight against climate change. 

Laura Cunningham, 20 years old (Communications)

I am currently studying electrical engineering at Binghamton University.

I was always hearing about Bedford 2030 (or Bedford 2020 at the time!) growing up as my family was always trying to get involved with their programs, and I really loved their mission and everything they stood for. I couldn’t have been more excited to hear about this internship position, because it was really the perfect opportunity to take the technical knowledge I’m learning at school and use it to help solve the most important issues our world is facing, all with an organization that I trusted and believed in. I can’t wait to get started on some projects and help bring fun, accessible sustainability to the community I grew up in!

One way I love to incorporate sustainability into my own life is shopping secondhand – I get essentially all of my clothes and a lot of my other belongings secondhand, and it’s so fun to getting creative at these shops and never knowing what you’re going to find. I also enjoy composting at home, but I am probably most proud of having been vegan for over five years now, which is just my own attempt to address the ways animal agriculture affects our planet!

Ariel Lindholm, 20 years old (Rooted Solutions)

I am from Croton on Hudson NY, and I am a rising senior at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

I decided to work with Bedford 2030 because I was made aware of the group via Croton 100, a local environmental organization based in my hometown. Bedford’s work is truly inspiring, and I wanted to learn more about how their multifaceted efforts led them to meet carbon emission reduction goals years ahead of schedule. Their values align well with mine, and I am excited to know more about operations of Bedford2030 and how they do such amazing work!

The climate action that I am most proud of is participating in ecosystem ecology research at school. It aims to discover more about how disturbances to forest systems alters soil nutrients and plants’ abilities to sequester carbon. The goal is to establish regenerative forest management practices, and support healthy ecosystems.

Olivia Nero, 18 years old (Social Media and Recycling Center)

I am an incoming freshman at the University of Miami and will be majoring in marine biology. I am from Bedford, New York. 
 
I decided to work with Bedford 2030 because I truly care about the environment. I feel that we all of a responsibility to help fight climate change and do our parts.
 
I am proud that this spring, I helped plant several native plant species in my backyard which are attracting many important pollinators like honey bees and butterflies.

Dylan Ouderkirk, 18 years old (Climate Smart Communities)

I am from St. Louis, MO and go to Vassar College.
 
I decided to work with Bedford 2030 this summer because I am interested in environmental policy and I loved the idea of getting to see all the amazing sustainable actions that Bedford has accomplished that can inspire other towns in the United States to do the same! 
 
The climate action that I am most proud of might seem small, but in the cosmetic world there is so much waste and single-use applicators, so any little reduction can help. I’ve started using bamboo-based reusable makeup wipes that I can throw in the laundry and reuse a million times instead of buying those larger wipes that can only be used once! 

Michael Milanes Jr., 17 years old (Guest reporter and writer)

 I will be attending Sarah Lawrence College in the fall. 
 
I decided to work with Bedford 2030 because it was a way of continuing my work to slow climate change. I am a member of the North Salem Climate Smart leadership committee in my hometown of North Salem, New York,
 
The climate action I’m probably most proud of is my work with the Town of North Salem last summer to make a database of greenhouse gas emissions within the town. Knowing these statistics, the town can find ways to increase the use of renewable energy and limit the impact greenhouse gas-related climate change has on the area.

Vansh Bhatt, 15 years old (Regular volunteer at TIOLI shed)

I am from Chappaqua and go to Horace Greeley High School
 
I was very interested in the environmental action being taken by Bedford 2030. Participating in their Greenlight competition taught me a lot and I hope Bedford 2030 will teach me more.
 
I am most proud of my Greenlight project. I was able to cleanup a large part of my school which was polluted by harmful tennis balls.