2012 News

In a recent Huffington Post article about preparing students to address growing ecological crises, Rhodes student Matthew Roberts ’14 recalls an environmental service project in high school about coal mining that galvanized him to have new focus on energy and sustainability. Read the article here.

Now a neuroscience major who bikes to school almost every day, Roberts graduated from Spartanburg Day School in 2010. He organized the school’s first environmental club and was president of Green Rhodes his freshman and sophomore years. “Coming to Rhodes has made me realize how far we still have to go both institutionally and culturally to effectively respond to the ever-looming climate crisis,” says Roberts. “We all have a lot of work to do, and it starts by changing our paradigm of environmental responsibility.”

Currently, he is on the board of directors of the Southern Energy Network, a nonprofit that works to combat climate change, advance renewable energy, and promote a smart, just energy economy by building a diverse movement of young people in the Southeast.

“We organize grassroots campaigns and provide education and training to empower new leaders and cultivate regional progress,” adds Roberts. “I′ve been involved with SEN since 2007.”

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