Zach Smith

Prof. Steve Petsch was so engaged by his experience teaching iCons I that he began adapting the iCons model to his Geoscience classes. As a final project in his Environmental Geology class last semester, students worked in 4-person teams to create a report and presentation on a water, energy, or climate change issue of their choice. The results were outstanding, and “one team did a particularly remarkable job. Their presentation dove into background science extremely well, and used this as a springboard for the rest of their research.”

That’s great, but why do we care? “A student on this team is Zach Smith, and his team agreed that Zach was key to guiding their successful research and presentation.”

Zach’s experience working in groups in iCons I helped him and his teammates plan and organize their project. He knew how to frame the presentation so it would flow smoothly from one concept to another. He knew it was more important to focus on concepts than present lots of factual data and to organize the presentation so it flowed smoothly and kept the audience engaged.

“iCons has provided me with the confidence of being able to discuss hard science in public. Before iCons, I always doubted my ability to grasp and understand science, but iCons showed me that I am competent and can discuss and think about scientific ideas and concepts. And my ability to work in groups has really improved since I joined iCons.”

A sophomore Environmental Science major from Redding, Conn., Zach chose the iCons Renewable Energy track because of his concerns about climate change and the need for energy security. He’s also interested in urban agriculture. He joined iCons because he wanted to do Renewable Energy work and because it gave him an opportunity to work with people from a variety of disciplines. Working with so many types of people “has opened my eyes to new approaches to problems that I wouldn’t have jumped on otherwise.”

He’s excited about being a mentor this spring to an iCons 1 students, and because he likes being involved in the community, he’ll also be tutoring at Amherst High School as part of the UCAN, the University Community Academic Network. UCAN is a volunteer group started by fellow iCons students Seamus Hughes, Sam Mardell, and Kurtz Schultz.

Zach doesn’t get bogged down in the negative aspects of problems. He’s eloquent and focused on results. “Learning about the dangers of climate change or how much of an impact one makes on the environment can dampen your day, but then learning about effective policy initiatives and the potential for change in the world easily overcomes those negatives.” Whether Zach ends up doing cutting edge climate change research or farming in Boston, we’re sure he’ll keep spreading his positivity and knowledge to everyone around him.