Currently, I am a recent graduate from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in lovely Worcester, Massachusetts. I am an electrical engineer who loves traveling, helping others, and the environment!

 

I decided to create this Flickr in order to update everyone on my travel and adventures that I am undertaking. After I graduate this upcoming May (2014), I will be volunteering with the Peace Corps beginning in June 2014. I hope to keep all of my friends and family updated about my work in Benin, and hope to share some of my experiences with them.

 

I am extremely excited and extremely nervous to leave, but I am looking forward to the experience, growing significantly as a person, and learning about the cultures of Benin.

 

The things that made me consider the Peace Corps were some of my experiences while at WPI. Starting my freshman year, I became involved in an organization “Engineers Without Borders”. Over the years, our organization has worked with a community in Guachthu’uq, Guatemala to build individual rainwater catchment systems in order to give the community cleaner and higher volumes of water throughout the year. I was even fortunate enough to be able to travel to Guatemala in January 2013 in order to help implement the very rainwater catchment systems that I had helped design back in Worcester, Massachusetts.

 

Another experience that I contribute greatly to my decision to volunteer with the Peace Corps was my Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) experience my junior year in Namibia. I was able to travel from Boston to London, London to Cape Town (for Spring Break) and then finally travel to Namibia, where I spent two months working on a project with the Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN). This project involved working with the Gobabeb Research and Training Centre (GRTC) located in the middle of the Namib Desert. At the Centre, we worked with the staff to implement new procedures (both technical and social changes) in order to create a more sustainable center (which operated solely on solar panels and a diesel generator). These changes were implemented to reduce waste, lower operational costs, and become more environmentally friendly.

 

Through these experiences, I was able to see several different cultures which all were quite different from those I had seen in the United States. I loved every second of these experiences and decided that the Peace Corps was right for me. I hope to continue to use my engineering background to work with communities all over the world develop and become more self-sufficient.

 

I am extremely excited to volunteer with the Peace Corps as an Environmental Action Adviser in Benin starting on June 23, 2014.

 

About me

 

Here are a few things that I enjoy in no particular order.

 

Adventuring – I love being outdoors and hiking. I am always down to explore new places and get lost somewhere. Whether it is driving around aimlessly or longboarding around town, I just love it! There is such a big world out there, why not explore it?

 

Video games – Since I first played N64 with my neighbor Tony I have always enjoyed playing video games. Sometimes I just need to indulge my nerdy side with some Fallout 3 or GTA. I also enjoy collecting old game consoles and games.

 

Engineering – I am an electrical engineer by training and for some reason actually love math and science. I prefer to focus on the power engineering side of my degree (Electrical and Computer Engineering) and am interested in renewable energy. My ideal career would be to help communities with infrastructure development to create more opportunities for those less fortunate. I hope to continue working with Engineers Without Borders into the future.

 

Photography – Probably the only creative thing about me, I really enjoy photography. It all started with my first DSLR, Nikon D3200 camera in Namibia. I enjoy taking pictures of the outdoors, animals and especially nighttime photography, taking pictures of the stars.

 

Animals – The number one thing that I want to buy after graduating is a dog, although I do love all animals! I would say I am a dog AND cat person.

 

TV shows: Although I don’t always have time to watch TV, I love the following shows and am always up to watch a new one; Game of Thrones, House of Cards, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Parks and Recreation, The Office, Bob’s Burgers, and Arrested Development.