Hometown: Pickerington, OH
Major: Environment, Economy, Development, Sustainabililty
Favorite LC Event: Baltimore and Washington DC Professional Development Trip

I’m Matthew Griffin a first year Environment, Economy, Development, and Sustainability (EEDS) major who was nervous about coming to OSU.  I saw applying to the SUSTAINS Learning Community as a way to make a University as large as OSU feel smaller and as a way to connect me with students who shared my interest of learning how to incorporate sustainability into today’s world. SUSTAINS proved to be all this and more.

The SUSTAINS advisors are experienced and passionate staff who provide plenty of interesting opportunities to get connected with what the people of OSU and Columbus are doing to become more sustainable; they have also taken us to interact firsthand with the latest innovations in clean energy. Through SUSTAINS I have been able to interact with biodigesters, volunteer at urban farms, have a conversation with the 2009 recipient of the Sustainability Science Award Elena Irwin, and participate in numerous other incredible opportunities. We even took a trip to our nation’s capital to meet with some of the top policy makers, business leaders, and researchers who are making incredible strides to lead the US to a greener future. What makes these experiences even better is the fact that I get to share them with the new friends I have made in SUSTAINS. My fellow SUSTAINS members are from all different walks of life and are in a variety of majors, but we are all linked by a common passion for sustainability that drives us to learn and grow together.

SUSTAINS has been such a large part of my college life so far, and I couldn’t be happier about my decision to apply. For any students who are looking for a community of impassioned students and want to get real-world experience in the field of sustainability, I highly recommend you check out SUSTAINS.