Ciao! My name is Danielle Russell and I am a rising sophomore Chemical Engineering student here at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition to my chemical engineering degree, I am pursuing a sustainability certificate and an environmental engineering minor. As my studies suggest, I am interested in the growing and ever important field of sustainability and hope to use my degree to work in a career centered around food and agriculture engineering. I anticipate that my program, Engineering Perspectives of the Renaissance and Sustainability: Florence, will align nicely with my interests. I am eager to explore the ways in which sustainable practices played a role in the Renaissance and how modern engineers can design for the future as scholars of the past.
When I am not studying and exploring my aforementioned academic interests, I fill my time with various involvements around Pitt’s campus. I am a member of Theta Tau, a co-ed professional engineering fraternity which focuses on professional development, community service, and personal growth through peer engineering connections. I am also a mentor with Strong Women Strong Girls, a female empowerment driven non-profit organization that provides programs for third through fifth grade girls in the Pittsburgh area. When I am not staying busy with all of that, I love trying out new restaurants around the city. As a self-proclaimed foodie, I am certainly looking forward to sampling all the delicious food Italy undoubtedly has to offer.
As my varied interests suggest, I love meeting and interacting with new people. This is just one of countless reasons I am excited to participate in Engineering Perspectives of the Renaissance and Sustainability: Florence. I am looking forward to being in class with peers from a variety of engineering backgrounds and hope to make connections within the group that I can bring back with me to Pittsburgh, alongside all my newly obtained engineering and sustainability knowledge. I was fortunate enough to participate in Plus 3: the Netherlands last year and still have personal and professional connections with people whom I met on that program. Hopefully I can experience similar connections on this study abroad. Additionally, it is my goal to gain a deepened understanding of sustainability that can be applied to my upcoming fall co-op with the Hershey Company. Chocolate, like many other large production operations, is an industry plagued by many sustainability challenges. I am confident that my time abroad will provide me with new insights that will allow me to both contribute meaningfully and maximize learning in my first chemical engineering position.