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Featured Volunteer - Nefertiti P.

NC GreenPower is incredibly grateful for our volunteers!
Our “Featured Volunteer” series will recognize some of our do-gooders for their dedication and service. Nefertiti became interested in renewable energy in her junior year of high school when taking AP Environmental Science. She went on to major in biology at Hampton University and learned more about the benefits of alternative energy sources in classes like Ecology through lectures and labs. That’s when she made a conscious effort to make a positive impact.

“When I first started volunteering with NC GreenPower,the solar schools program was not as immense as it is today. It has been one of main reasons I’ve remained an active volunteer with NCGP and I am thankful to have been a part of the impact it has made.”

Nefertiti found out about NC GreenPower while doing some independent research looking for organizations that support and promote renewable energy in North Carolina and has been volunteering for NC GreenPower for about 5 years.

Her favorite events are STEM expos or events dealing with youth and students. She believes “it’s very important to educate youth on the importance of STEM, including renewable energy, and how they can effect change even if they are still young.” Her most memorable volunteer experience was the 2017 STEM Back to School Minority fair. It was especially important to her because she founded a nonprofit organization (Peoples’ Prep and Progress, Inc.) that uses STEM and other project based learning to help close the achievement gap between low-income youth and their peers. She loved being able to talk to all the students and parents about NC GreenPower and her journey through her career in STEM. “I enjoy knowing that my time volunteering with NCGP will provide benefits for families and communities long after I’m gone. I enjoy being a part of making my community cleaner while making an impression on the students. I remember when I was young and first took an interest in the environment and sustaining it for future generations. It is nice to be on the other side and be a resource for students that are now where I once was.”

She wants others to know that volunteering at NC GreenPower is very rewarding, and even if you do not know much about renewable energy and solar schools, that shouldn’t intimidate you! “The organization provides all the resources you need to stay current and knowledgeable to spread the word about all the great things going on at NC GreenPower. Besides, every event I’ve been a part of, I’ve had a great partner there volunteering with me, and I used that as an opportunity to learn more from them and become a better volunteer.”

Nefertiti’s main motivation to volunteer is that she wants to contribute her time to making North Carolina cleaner. “When I learned of all the renewable energy and carbon offset projects the organization was engaged in, I wanted to promote their mission. Then I became further motivated once the solar schools project rolled out.”

We are very excited to have volunteers like Nefertiti to help us achieve our mission. NC GreenPower operates using a small staff so to help us spread the word about the program so we depend on hundreds of volunteers to provide education and outreach to the public. If you’re interested in helping out, you can sign up here.
Posted by Julia Brown at 1:30 PM No comments: