Current Degree Program: B.S. in Textile Engineering and a B.S. in Science, Technology, and Society with minors in Spanish, History, and Industrial Engineering
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
Area of interest in Sustainability: Supply Chain Sustainability

Emily Mobley is a third-year student participating in the PACKImpact sustainability career development program. She is double majoring in Textile Engineering and Science, Technology, and Society with a concentration in Sustainability, along with three interdisciplinary minors.

Her interest in sustainability was sparked by her first-year engineering classes, which led her to pursue high-impact experiences. Key among these are her work as a Zero Waste Intern for the Waste Reduction Office at NC State, where she ran the Zero Waste football program and composting initiatives, and her involvement with the Zero Waste Wolves club. She also gained valuable experience as a Sustainability Coordinator intern with Live Nation, an opportunity she found through the PACKImpact weekly roundup email.

“The thing that I love most about the program is the weekly roundup PACKImpact emails… And last year, I did an internship with Live Nation as a sustainability coordinator, and I found that within the weekly roundup email. So that was a really good experience. I think that that has influenced my career goals a lot, and it wouldn’t have happened had I not found the internship from that email.”

Emily credits the PACKImpact program for exposing her to the broader facets of sustainability, such as energy and water consumption, and for expanding her perspective on careers in sustainability to stretch beyond her initial focus on waste reduction. 

“[PACKImpact] made me realize that there’s more to sustainability outside of zero waste and consumption… Before, I had kind of thought that waste reduction was the end all be all of sustainability, but PACKImpact has shown me that there’s a lot more, and it’s helped me keep my eyes open when I’m looking towards the future and other opportunities.”

This year, PACKImpact launched a dashboard that allows students to input any activity they’ve participated in during their college career into an interface that categorizes each activity under the 17 UN SDGs, visualizes students’ investment in building related skills, and prompts students to reflect on each experience they input. Emily shared how the dashboard had unlocked new reflections on her expansive work in sustainability. 

“I love the dashboard so much. It’s nice to have all of my activities in one place together, but my favorite part isn’t even like the list of activities. I really love being able to see the achievements dashboard and then the skills and competencies calculations, because it lets me, like, see all in one place how much time I’m dedicating to each sustainability goal, and then also how much time I’m dedicating to each skill of, like, analytical thinking, innovation, interdisciplinary awareness.”

Looking ahead, she is committed to a career in sustainability, with an interest in corporate sustainability within the supply chain or manufacturing process. And, she notes, her commitment to zero waste will continue past her time as a student here.

“… I have really fallen in love with waste reduction at NC State, so even after I graduate, I hope to continue volunteering for the Zero Waste program, or if I move somewhere else, find a way to continue cleaning up litter and doing zero waste in my community.”

Beyond that, check out Emily’s other recommendations:
Zero Waste Wolves
Blue Economy Workshop