#sustec

“I saw more of the world in the past 3 months than I had ever before in my entire life.”

I am an undergraduate electrical engineering student at Harvard University going into my third year. With the support of ThinkSwiss, I was fortunate enough to spend my summer working with the Group for Sustainability and Technology (‘SusTec’) at ETH Zürich conducting research on decentralized renewable energy systems.

The project I worked on consisted of a comprehensive review of existing literature and pilot projects located around the world. Most of my work focused on evaluating different technical configurations, modeling approaches, and end-use applications for energy systems incorporating decentralized renewable generation (such as wind or solar PV), multiple energy carriers (such as hydrogen, electricity, or heat), and storage.

The systems I worked with varied widely in scale, ranging from powering a single building to an entire island, and utilized a broad range of different technologies. The main goal of the project was to determine the state of art for energy systems of this type, both in literature and in practice, and to derive policy implications for how energy production can be further decarbonized using decentralized renewable resources in this way.

Living in Zürich felt like a truly international experience, as people from all over the world live there to study at ETH (which stands for the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, in German). The house where I stayed was full of exchange students from all four hemispheres, so it was especially exciting to get to know people of so many different backgrounds and learn about their cultures. For example, in the shared kitchen I could watch people prepare traditional food from their home and learn something new about a different country’s cuisine every evening. I have even picked up some Swiss German and a few words of various other languages.

This is probably true of most Swiss cities, but a major observation I had of Zürich is that everyone is incredibly active! As a Division 1 college athlete (cross country runner turned lightweight rower), this worked very much to my advantage; everyone in my research group was either a serious Ironman triathlete, or otherwise very invested and interested in my athletic career. This meant that I almost always had people to run, swim, or go cycling with outside of work or on lunch breaks. They also introduced me to the university-wide athletic association, ASVZ, which organizes tons of group athletic activities, in the gym or outdoors, every single day. So rather than just ‘fitting in’ my training around work, I had the opportunity to meet other people and explore beautiful outdoor trails, lakes, and forests along the way! It amazes me how these people are so in tune with nature and with sport, all while accomplishing seriously incredible things in their studies or careers at ETH. The way these people live their lives is how I have always dreamt of living mine, and every person I met was a source of tremendous inspiration.

Switzerland’s unparalleled natural beauty was a major motivation for my desire to study there, I took full advantage of this wonderful outdoor-active culture and loved every part of it. I was fortunate enough to find and buy a used bicycle, ride around Lake Zürich, join some new friends for a run up Uetliberg (Zürich’s closest small mountain), and go for multiple swims in the lake and the river, all within my first week. I also spent many mornings rowing on beautiful Lake Zürich at sunrise, with the Alps shimmering in a breathtaking pink early-morning glow in the distance. Cycling along the Limmat river at 4:45am in the dark blue morning glow, I still could never quite believe how lucky I was to be able to start my day on the lake doing what I love.

Unabashedly fan-girling over Sarah Springman, the rector of ETH Zürich (and only female board member!) and former Ironman triathlete and rowing extraordinaire, I one day worked up the courage to send an email asking if we could meet for a row on the lake or a coffee. An aspiring female engineer/athlete myself, she is a tremendous inspiration; to my surprise, she agreed! We spent one morning rowing on the lake and chatting, and I will always appreciate her enthusiasm to take an interest in my aspirations and her willingness to fit my request into her packed schedule.

Other memorable moments include hiking, cycling, and running in the Alps with people who shared my passion for such activities most Americans I know would consider extreme. The opportunity to spend almost every weekend in the most beautiful mountains I’ve ever seen was truly unforgettable and I will never be able to thank ThinkSwiss enough for enabling this experience. Below are some photos, which could never begin to do justice to the scenery or the exhilaration I felt on the excursions, but I hope they give somewhat of an idea of how much I’ve enjoyed my experience.

Spending this summer in Switzerland has helped me grow as a person in every possible way. Since it was my first extended experience abroad, I saw more of the world in the past 3 months than I had ever before in my entire life, and I enjoyed trying and learning new things and facing new challenges each day. The research experience has helped me envision more clearly what I want to do in the future regarding my studies and career, and it has opened new doors I had never before imagined would be possible.

I am unbelievably grateful for all of the incredible experiences I have had this summer and for the amazing people I’ve met along the way. I cannot wait to hear more from other students on the research scholarship and perhaps see them again in Switzerland if we ever return. At the moment, I am very much planning to pursue postgraduate studies at ETH and I feel incredibly fortunate to have had this experience to show me that possibility and help me prepare.

With gratitude,