Tufts Alumni Highlight: Carly Thibodeau

Meet Carly, Director of Sustainability at Holy Cross and proud Tufts alum!

When Carly arrived at Tufts for graduate school in the Urban and Environmental Policy program at the height of the pandemic, she was looking for ways to connect with campus life. That’s when she spotted an opening for a recycling intern position at the Office of Sustainability. As a self-proclaimed waste nerd, the role immediately caught her interest. We recently sat down with Carly to ask her about her internship experience and what she is doing now.

Carly told us that what made the internship special wasn’t just sorting recyclables, but the hands-on data collection that really excited her. Her favorite task was creating waste tracking sheets to gather campus-wide data, a system she loved so much that she brought it to her job after graduate school and continues to use it today.  Carly particularly enjoyed supporting the Green Labs Initiative. Through surveying lab users and analyzing their responses, she discovered what she calls “the more human side of sustainability”: understanding how individual actions impact environmental outcomes. The practical experience opened her eyes to the world of higher education sustainability and helped her understand how campuses operate.

Working at Tufts gave Carly a crucial insight: “A campus is like a microcosm.” If you can apply solutions on a campus, then you can see how to apply them on a larger scale. Her familiarity with Tufts’ processes, combined with exposure to the wider world of higher education, gave her valuable insights into how solutions could scale.

Carly, along with two other panelists, participate in Endicott College’s “Join the Conversation” event, discussing topics ranging from environmental sustainability to sports engagement.

What makes Carly’s path even more interesting is that she didn’t originally plan to work in sustainability leadership. Her journey began in undergrad with hopes of teaching elementary school, which involved studying abroad. This international experience opened her eyes to environmental issues and led her to pursue a double major in economics and environmental studies, hoping to bridge the gap between the two fields. After gaining diverse experience in various roles, including serving as a park ranger and interning at a solar company, she discovered her passion for the human side of sustainability, which ultimately brought her back to higher education sustainability.

Today, as Director of Sustainability at Holy Cross, Carly leads campus-wide sustainability initiatives, applying a similar approach that she developed during her time at Tufts. She focuses on building community, taking cues from students, and being present in the community. Her internship experience taught her that understanding campus communities and engaging with people is just as important as tracking environmental metrics. What started as a way to learn about campus sustainability during graduate school became the foundation for a career in higher education environmental leadership.

Carly’s career advice for Tufts students: Start with what you’re interested in, do something fulfilling that you enjoy, and be open to any opportunities that come your way. Take advantage of Tufts’ resources, events, and opportunities to explore and try out new things!