EDF Climate Corps fellow | July 24, 2013
Kethia Chheng and Evan Fisher are two EDF Climate Corps fellows from Columbia University. Read on to learn about their environmental passions and how they are identifying energy efficiency opportunities at The Alamo Colleges and NYSE Euronext.
Name: Kethia Chheng 
Hometown: Dallas, TX
School: Columbia University
Host Organization: The Alamo Colleges
Q: What is one of the projects you’re working on this summer?
A: I’m working on a Green House Gas emissions inventory and report as well as an audit of recent lighting reports.
Q: Have you encountered any difficulties or barriers?
A: Mostly, the difficulties I have come across have been in gathering data. The information is very spread out across a lot of different people.
Q: What are some ways you’ve discovered to overcome this difficulty?
A: I’ve found that I can use secondary data to make estimates for the GHG report. Also, sometimes, I just need to be patient.
Q: What is one thing you’ve learned this summer?
A: I’ve learned that a four-day work week makes sense from a school and administrative standpoint. It’s also a way to save a ton of energy. I think the whole world should be on four-day work weeks.
Q: What has been the best part of your summer fellowship?
A: I don’t think that it’s an exaggeration that this program and the people who work in the sustainability field are trying to save the world. Also, the strong community of EDF Climate Corps fellows and the recent announcement made by president Obama on his climate change plan each bring that goal home.
Q: What is the mark you want to leave on the world?
A: When I talk about work, I don’t want to say, “This is where I work.” I want to say, “This is what I do.”
Name: Evan Fisher 
Hometown: Calabasas, CA
School: Columbia University
Host Organization: NYSE Euronext
Q: Why did you want to join EDF Climate Corps?
A: One of the most pressing challenges of my generation is to be the stewards of the transition to new energy sources. I love how EDF’s motto is “finding the ways that work.” The phrase resonates with me due to my background in the oil industry. I’m interested in exploring opportunities to transition to cleaner and more efficient technologies in a realistic and economical way.
Q: What are you working on this summer?
A: I’m looking at energy efficiency initiatives at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), a national historic landmark building in the heart of the financial district. The NYSE is owned by NYSE Euronext.
Q: What is the most difficult part of tackling this project?
A: The hardest part is that, when working at such an important global financial center, operations are first and foremost. You don’t want to mess with the operations of the trading floor, and I always have to be mindful of that. The difficulty is finding solutions within that constraint.
Q: What is one thing you learned this summer?
A: With the right resource like an EDF Climate Corps fellow, any facility or company can benefit from energy efficiency improvements. No matter how advanced the company is or what region they are in, they can benefit because there are so many different challenges and new technologies. While it is often hard to find someone with the ability and bandwidth to look at energy efficiency improvements, it is always going to benefit the company if it does.
Q: What is the best part of working at NYSE Euronext?
A: The best part is the level of excitement around the building on a daily basis. I enjoy reading articles about Wall Street because that’s where I work every day. The second best part is working at an organization that is so dedicated to energy efficiency, which is demonstrated by its commitment to bringing on an EDF Climate Corps fellow like me.
This post is a part of our "Interviews with Tomorrow's Leaders" series. Stay tuned for more interviews with our 2013 EDF Climate Corps fellows!
About EDF Climate Corps
EDF Climate Corps (edfclimatecorps.org) taps the talents of tomorrow’s leaders to save energy, money and the environment by placing specially-trained EDF fellows in companies, cities and universities as dedicated energy problem solvers. Working with hundreds of leading organizations, EDF Climate Corps has found an average of $1 million in energy savings for each participant. For more information, visit edfclimatecorps.org. Read our blog at edfclimatecorps.org/blog. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/edfbiz and on Facebook at facebook.com/EDFClimateCorps.