My interest in urban sustainability became more concrete during a summer internship with a nonprofit composting organisation in 2019. Working within an organisation involved in organic-waste collection helped me connect environmental goals with the practical work needed to achieve them. Waste diversion was no longer simply an idea: it depended on organised processes and the participation of people using them. That experience encouraged me to pursue further study in sustainability.
I hold a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, which provided a technical foundation for examining processes and their wider consequences. I now want to connect that background with a better understanding of how cities manage resources and address environmental challenges. A postgraduate programme in sustainability in the urban environment appeals to my interest in approaching these questions across disciplinary boundaries.
My composting experience continued when I was accepted into a city-supported master composting programme in 2020. Together, these opportunities strengthened my interest in organic-waste management and the possibilities for recovering value from materials that would otherwise be discarded. They also encouraged me to think beyond individual actions towards the systems that make sustainable practices workable. I want graduate study to help me investigate these relationships more critically.
My academic record requires context. I graduated in 2017 with a GPA of 2.8 after a period in which my brother's serious illness affected my concentration. While awaiting a heart transplant, he faced an uncertain future, and the emotional strain influenced my performance. My grades began to improve after he received a transplant, although there was limited time remaining before graduation. Before transferring to a four-year college, I had been an honours student at community college. I recognise the importance of demonstrating readiness for graduate-level work and offer this context to explain the circumstances behind my results.
Since graduating, I have also established a clothing and cosmetics business that includes making natural products. Running a business has given me another perspective on the decisions involved in producing and selling goods. It has increased my interest in examining environmental claims carefully and understanding how business practices relate to broader sustainability goals.
Through graduate study, I want to strengthen my ability to evaluate urban environmental problems and contribute to practical responses. My particular interest is in waste reduction and resource recovery, informed by both my engineering education and composting experience. I would bring a technical background, a willingness to learn across disciplines and a clear motivation to connect study with the environmental decisions cities face.