Meet Marie Hubbard, a sophomore studying Civil & Environmental Engineering and a member of the Transportation SWATeam.
Hubbard learned about the SWATeam through a Civil Engineering course that focuses on campus sustainability projects. She joined because she’s passionate about contributing her ideas and making an impact on sustainability at the university level.
“I think it’s valuable to have a student perspective on transportation on campus and I want to be able to make improvements on things that will directly affect me,” she said.
One of the main goals of the Transportation SWATeam is to develop concrete objectives for reducing transportation emissions in the most efficient way possible. This includes encouraging active transportation, ride-sharing, low-emission vehicles, and use of teleconferencing technology to avoid travel for business trips.
“I hope to help develop more sustainable practices in transportation and get students more involved in learning about these practices,” Hubbard said. “I think a lot of people want to help address environmental concerns but are unsure of the best way to do so.
“Transportation is something that is impacted by personal decisions, and this resonates with me because there are so many issues that many people feel they are too small to make a difference in. By choosing to ride a bike around campus or take the bus when you’re going to Chicago, you are making an impact in the fight to reduce emissions.”
Outside of her involvement with the SWATeam, Hubbard is a pledge in Theta Tau and is also the Director of Fundraising for Illini 4000, a student run nonprofit that raises money and awareness for cancer research and patient support services by participating in annual cross-country bike rides.