SCHOOL IN SUSTAINABLE WASTE MANAGEMENT AND RESOURCE EFFICIENCY

In Open Doors I selected chemistry because my program — Industrial Ecology — is a part of the Faculty of Biotechnologies (now the Faculty of Ecotechnologies) and chemistry is a vital subject in this field. My project is also related to this field. I am working on methods of mitigating carbon dioxide emissions. In the framework of our course, we study various chemicals that pollute the environment. We are also taught about several organic and inorganic materials that can be used to purify the environment.

My project is focused on developing sustainable strategies to reduce carbon emissions. This is the need of the hour due to the rapidly increasing amount of greenhouse gases in the environment. I am investigating materials that might be able to efficiently absorb carbon dioxide from the air.

I really liked the concept of ITMO’s Buddy System. My buddy is a really helpful person. Having a local buddy is always so good. It helps international students to settle down better in a new country.

I was surprised to see that everyone at ITMO is good at English. When I came here, I was not very fluent in English but I received a lot of support from ITMO. I am also learning Russian, a completely new language, but again, with everyone’s help, I am able to achieve my goals faster. That’s the beauty of ITMO. Everyone is so helpful and cooperative. I also appreciate the opportunities provided to students here.

My project revolves around transforming the landfill of Noviy Svet-Eco LLC. The main aim is to promote environmental protection, economic growth, and social equity by transforming the landfill site into a new sustainable eco-techno park. Based on my detailed analysis and literature review, I made a design including a 3D simulation and detailed studies of possible features of the new design to promote energy efficiency, water efficiency, the use of eco-friendly materials, innovation in design, etc. Also, I am aiming to obtain the SITES sustainable landscape environmental certification for my project.

I chose Industrial Ecology because it has majors within it that I wanted to study. I was looking for an urban ecology or environmental design major and found it in industrial ecology with great topics and subjects! I studied in the specialization of Environmental Design, in this program it was interesting for me to get useful knowledge on how to create and certify eco-friendly products, understanding a product’s entire life cycle to minimize environmental harm from start to finish. The program was interesting for me because it offers enormous contributions towards building a greener future!

I would like to continue studying at ITMO. I have already won the Open Doors scholarship for my PhD. And since I have already started working on my project at ITMO, it made no sense to go to a different university.

I treated the program as a chance to expand and grow my competences. I enjoyed studying as it was up-to-date and practice-oriented. We had plenty of practical and lab classes during which we worked on real-world cases. Students could also combine work and studies, which is definitely an advantage.

What I loved most about the Faculty of Ecotechnologies was its educational approach and lecturers. From the very first months, I got interested in all the courses we had; I enjoyed working on applied projects instead of only cramming theory. I learned about environmental documentation, the standards and methods used for both monitoring and assessment. In the middle of the first year, we were to choose our future specializations. I opted for Environmental Design and did not regret it. As an environmental design specialist, I learned about life cycle assessment and did my first-ever internship at the company Prostoe Delo. I also want to note that the university is greatly engaged in students' development. ITMO regularly hosts different meetups, events, and projects everyone can take part in. It also doesn’t forget about the technological aspect: the university’s labs are equipped with up-to-date equipment. These two years were great, so I decided to stay in academia and pursue my PhD. My decision was fully supported by my lecturers.