Katie Rascoe ‘22, a Marketing and Sustainability dual major, is spending her summer as a UNH Changemaker Sustainability Fellow with Timberland.
“When I first found out about this fellowship, I was shocked by how well it aligned with my professional interests and passions. Timberland wanted a student to help them develop better strategies for communicating their sustainability and social justice goals. I believe marketing is an incredibly powerful tool for influencing consumer behavior, and there is an opportunity to harness it to inform and inspire people to make sustainable decisions. I decided right then and there that I was going to do everything I could to secure this position.
Initially, I was afraid that my lack of experience with this caliber of work was going to show, but my previous internships and time in the B Impact Clinic prepared me to effectively communicate ideas with brand leaders and to make realistic, yet meaningful recommendations for how to engage and educate Timberland’s consumers.
It has been eye-opening to see how complex the operations behind a marketing or sustainability campaign can be from inception to implementation, and I’ve witnessed the miraculous amount of coordination and dedication it takes to get one of these campaigns off the ground. I have also learned just how important–and how challenging!–it can be for sustainability-focused brands to remain rooted in their values through the ups and downs of the market.
When I discovered the Fellowship was going to be remote, I felt discouraged, but the virtual setting opened more doors. I’ve had the privilege to sit in on Zoom calls with Timberland’s Global Stewards–a group of employees from all over the world who are leading the sustainability and service efforts in their regions. This level of connectivity would not have been possible in a normal setting.
This experience has really reinforced my desire to work with highly motivated, sustainability-minded people that uphold a positive mindset. I highly recommend the Sustainability Fellowship to anyone interested in having a high-impact summer and making meaningful connections with sustainability-minded peers!”
