College Up Close: Victoria Farella, E3P
Victoria Farella’s love of nature began early in her childhood.
A first-year student from Eastchester, New York, Farella grew up taking days-long hiking trips in the mountains, cleaning up nearby rivers and feeling at home in the outdoors.
“However, it wasn’t until this year that I began to realize I can channel this passion into a fulfilling and purposeful career,” said the environmental sciences major.
Farella names Gregory Gangi, teaching professor at the Institute for the Environment, as a mentor who helped guide her to her perfect major at Carolina and to an industry she can’t wait to explore.
“There is so much versatility and potential for innovation in the field of clean energy and sustainability,” she said. “It is hard not to be excited about a career in the field.”
To prepare for that pathway, Farella is a Cleantech Corner intern at UNC. During this internship, she helped to plan the career fair at the 2023 Cleantech Summit, the largest collegiate gathering of cleantech professionals in the nation.
“After working on this event over this semester, it was amazing to see it all finally come together,” said Farella of the summit, which took place March 27-28. Her favorite panel was focused on nuclear energy and its path forward.
Farella gives a shout-out to the Renewable Energy Special Projects Committee (RESPC), a student-run committee that implements energy education projects on campus.
Outside her work in environmental sciences, Farella’s favorite memory from her first year as a Tar Heel was being in the first row of the risers at a men’s basketball game –– and not just because she and her friends were spotted on ESPN.
As she looks forward to her next three years at UNC, Farella says she’s thrilled for all there is to come in school and in her chosen field.
“I cannot wait to see where this path will lead me.”
By Jess Abel ’19
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