Tufts Alumni Highlight: Rosemary Loer

Rosemary Loer gives a thumbs-up aboard a research vessel, ready to deploy an underwater vehicle for ocean exploration at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Rosemary Loer, a 2023 Tufts University mechanical engineering graduate, is making waves, literally, at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). She designs and operates underwater vehicles that scientists from all kinds of fields use to explore the ocean and uncover its secrets. Looking back at her time at the Office of Sustainability (OOS), you might wonder how she moved from a recycling data intern to exploring the deep ocean.

“Though my day-to-day at WHOI looks very different than at the OOS, there’s a lot of overlap in the missions of these organizations,” Loer said. “Namely in their commitments to sustainable and resilient solutions and to engaging the community in this work.”

At Tufts, Loer’s favorite project was all about digging into the numbers behind the university’s recycling and composting programs. She tracked greenhouse gas emissions for each waste stream, including transportation, and compared them to what would happen if all that material had gone straight to the trash. The results helped show which programs were actually making a difference in reducing emissions and, in the broader sense, how they lined up with Tufts’ sustainability goals.

“Working at the OOS showed me that you don’t have to be an expert in every aspect of sustainability to make a difference” Loer said.

Loer’s journey from tracking campus waste to helping scientists explore the deep ocean shows how versatile engineering can be. Whether it’s the small-scale systems of a university or the vast, mysterious ecosystems under the sea, the skills she honed at Tufts travel with her everywhere, no matter how similar or different the challenges.

Rosemary’s advice for current Tufts students: “You can make a big impact just by starting with an area you’re excited about and approaching it through a sustainability lens.”