Environmental Sustainability at Stanford - Ira's Story

One of our TISB student, Ira from Grade 9, recently took part in the Stanford Environmental & Water Studies Scholars Program that is run by the Centre for Sustainable Development & Global Competitiveness of Stanford University. The program brought together 36 high school students from Asia to develop a deeper understanding of the environment and develop ideas for a sustainable future.

I have always had an interest in the sciences, and this program has really enthused me to look at these issues from a different lens – Ira, Grade 9

The Stanford Environmental & Water Studies Scholars Program took place online on eight Saturdays between over a period between the 15 August and the 3 October. “I had to juggle it along with my school work and assessments through this period, but it was extremely rewarding”, says Ira who is really glad that she was chosen in a selection process which included submitting a detailed personal statement and an online interview. The idea came to Ira from Ms Priya from the College Counselling department and Grade 12 student, Ishita. “Sustainable development has always interested me particularly as we live in a country with limited means and where the impact of climate change is becoming very visible”, explains Ira who felt that learning about complex issues from real-life practitioners has been important to her personal development.

The main focus of the program is to bring subject experts in areas as diverse as civil engineering to smart cities to water purification, to share their knowledge with the student participants. In addition to learning from the lecturers and practitioners, the participants also completed three projects – mixing collaboration and individual submissions during the course of the program. The program stress the need for innovative ideas to be able to solve complex environmental issues, and young people are important stakeholders in this journey. “I hope to be able to put what I have learned to more use over the coming years. Who knows, maybe I can also help develop water recycling systems for Disneyland as Ms Helen Chen, one of the speakers did!”, says Ira, who has been selected as part of a team that is organising a webinar on sustainability next year. “The dates are still to be finalised but I really hope that this will generate interest on this important issue in our school and community”, concludes Ira. 

To find out more about the program, visit the Stanford Environmental & Water Studies Scholars website