The GREEN Program Brings Students to the Best Places to Study Sustainability, Including Philadelphia
August 6, 2014 Category: UncategorizedThe GREEN program is a new kind of study abroad program that helps students from around the world visit other cities and countries to study innovative practices in sustainability.
“We run short-term career accelerating programs abroad, focused on specific topics revolving around sustainability, sustainable development and renewable energy,” said Brady Halligan, director of strategic partnerships and enrollment.
“We do these programs currently in the best places to study these topics,” he added.
The GREEN program currently has a program in Iceland, which focuses on renewable energy and sustainability, and in Peru, which covers water resource management and sustainable practices.
“It’s important for us to be taking students to the best places in the world to learn about and gain access into these types of technologies,” said Melissa Lee, founder and CEO.
The study-abroad programs take place during university breaks, compared to some traditional study abroad programs that last an entire semester or school year. Students also have the opportunity to receive university credit through the program. The GREEN program has worked with at least 180 universities so far.
“We’ve been really doing a great job at revolutionizing the way students within STEM get industry access,” said Alex Tanenbaum, director of marketing and strategy, adding that the program allows students to get industry access in ten days without having to do an entire semester abroad or a summer-long internship.
Recently The GREEN program was ranked a top-10 social innovation company at UN Social Innovation Summit by the STEM Education Committee. Last March, it became a partner in the Institute of International Education‘s Generation Study Abroad program, which is aimed at increasing the number of US students who study abroad to 600,000 students in the next five years.
A New Program in Philadelphia
The team, which was originally based in New Brunswick, New Jersey (they started the program in a college dorm room at Rutgers University), moved to Philadelphia because of the resources here.
Now, the team is developing a study abroad program to bring students to Philadelphia. The program is set to begin next summer and will focus on sustainable design and urban regeneration.
“We wanted to create a program here to demonstrate those great things and how Philadelphia is reshaping itself and redefining itself as a leader in green initiatives,” Halligan said. “[And to] also put Philadelphia on the map as place to come study, learn and then stay to work.”
The team’s goal is to attract students from around the country, as well as international students, to come to Philadelphia. Philadelphia University’s Master of Sustainable Design program will be one of the partners.
Find more information about the program (including how to apply as a student or University partner) on The GREEN program website.