SVP Sustainable Futures Fellow Profiles

Gigi Jones ('26), from Greenwich, CT, is majoring in Environmental Studies with a minor in Entrepreneurship. Her project aims to improve energy efficiency in low-income homes in Santa Clara. This fellowship allows her to explore her passion for helping others and the environment while making meaningful discoveries about her future career goals and independent research.

Isabella Gomez ('27), from San Lorenzo, CA, is majoring in Philosophy with a minor in Environmental Studies. Her project aims to inform the local community about the Native plants of the area and their benefits and traditional uses. This fellowship gives her the opportunity to highlight the importance of the intersectionality of Native ecological knowledge and local sustainability efforts.

Ximena Garcia-Isabelli ('26), from Spokane, WA, is majoring in Environmental Science with minors in Biology and Geospatial Analysis. Her project aims to improve water supply conservation and reduce urban heat islands within Santa Clara. This fellowship strengthens her ability to implement data-driven solutions that enhance the quality of life for communities in Santa Clara. 

Gabrielle "Ayla" Flanagan ('23), from Dallas, Texas, majored in Environmental Studies with minors in Public Health and Sustainability. In fall 2025, she began pursuing a Master of Science degree in Community Health and Prevention Research at Stanford University.

Ayla's project, Nourishing the Future: Research on Building Sustainable Food Systems, focused on the root cause of challenges in sustainable food systems and reliance on food pantries. Through her research and interviews with food pantry managers, food recovery directors, urban gardeners, and policy and advocacy directors, Ayla brought forward recommendations for the City of Santa Clara.

Connor Grady ('23), from Seattle, Washington, majored in General Engineering (with a Sustainable Engineering Concentration), with minors in Sustainability and Design Thinking. He currently works as R&D Test Engineer at Antora Energy in the Bay Area.

Connor's project, Designing an Equitable Shared Solar Program for Income-Qualified Multifamily Housing, focused on designing a shared rooftop solar program for multifamily housing in socially vulnerable communities. His research was conducted to inform the strategic creation of a program designed to incentivize rooftop solar energy installations.

Declan Bernal ('23), from San Jose, CA, majored in Environmental Studies & Political Science. In Fall 2024, he began pursuing a Master of City Planning degree with a concentration in Transportation Policy and Planning at the University of California, Berkeley.

Declan's project, Assessing Equity Gaps in the Sustainable Transportation Network, focused on assessing areas in the City of Santa Clara with limited access to sustainable transportation. In identifying these areas, he found three locations of interest where the lack of sustainable transportation infrastructure coincides with socioeconomically vulnerable populations, according to demographic and other data.

Chrislyn "Chrissy" Brandon ('25), from Long Beach, CA, majored in Political Science and Psychology.

Chrissy's project, Cultivating a Sustainable Tomorrow: Community Gardens and Food Security in the City of Santa Clara, focused on how the city can provide more support to improve food security, including leveraging food waste as a resource to enhance food recovery. (Faculty mentor: Dr. Christopher Bacon)

Emil Chaia ('25), from Mexico City, MX, majored in Finance with minors in International Business and Innovation & Design Thinking. 

Emil's project, Bridging the Decarbonization Gap in Minority-Owned Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the City of Santa Clara, focused on analyzing existing financial securities, such as green bonds and credits, to support Northern California's decarbonization initiatives. (Faculty mentor: Tony Nguyen)

Sarah "Sally" Walsh ('24), from Chicago, IL, majored in Psychology, with minors in Sustainability and Environmental Studies. She is currently working abroad in Norway as a sea kayak guide and farm hand, and plans on volunteering as a Workaway in Portugal and Italy to help others with their passion projects before heading back to the States in the New Year. 

Sally's project, Enhancing Cycling in Santa Clara: Uncovering Residents’ Motivations and Reducing Inequities, focused on Santa Clara's active transportation access, specifically with cycling, to identify residents' motivations and reduce inequities. (Faculty mentor: Dr. C.J. Gabbe)

Andréa Georgenes ('25), from Wellesley, MA, majored in Environmental Studies and Dance.

Andréa's project, Assessing Solar Photovoltaic Accessibility and Social Vulnerability in Santa Clara, focused on solar photovoltaic accessibility, specifically using solar permit requests to determine if trends align with socioeconomic vulnerabilities and whether existing policies equitably support solar adoption across different demographics. (Faculty mentor: Dr. Michael Kevane)

Bianca "Bea" Ricafort ('26), from South San Francisco, CA, is majoring in Environmental Studies, with minors in Economics and Spanish Studies. 

Bea's project, Mapping Resilience and Community Through Transformed Green Spaces in Santa Clara, focused on analyzing Santa Clara’s social, economic, and environmental vulnerabilities to identify high-vulnerability sites that should be prioritized for future green space development. (Faculty mentor: Jake Dialesandro)

Yasmin Urzua-Gutierrez ('25), from Bellevue, NE, majored in Political Science. 

Yasmin's project, Redirecting Power into the Hands of Communities through Neighborhood Resilience Hubs, focused on researching existing Neighborhood Resilience Hub Programs to determine the feasibility of implementing a hub in Santa Clara by weighing economic costs against expected social benefits. (Faculty mentor: Dr. William Sundstrom)