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Environment Student Profiles

Students in the Environment BDP form a community with shared interests in understanding and addressing a wide range of contemporary environmental issues—from climate change to sustainable building, and from air and water pollution to environmental policy. Environment students have come from a wide range of majors at UT, including Advertising, Anthropology, Art History, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Engineering, Geography, Geology, Government, Journalism, Philosophy, Plan II, Public Relations, and many others.

Name: Jacob Bintliff
BDP: Environment
Major: Latin American Studies, French

What attracted you to the Bridging Disciplines Programs?

BDP was the only venue I could find at UT that would let me spend substantial amounts of time studying, working with, and researching the fascinating and important topic of environmental sustainability. I would likely have found internships or done independent research in the field anyway, but BDP was a way to have those efforts recognized on paper.

How have the BDPs helped shape or influence your plans for the future?

By facilitating my participation in an array of experiences including environmental courses, hands-on sustainability practice, travel to conferences, and independent research, BDP has given me a taste of many paths I might chose to pursue in the future such as graduate education or a career in sustainable development.

What were the highlights of your connecting experience and what did you learn from it?

So much of what I have been proud of participating in and accomplishing in my time at UT has been such an integral part of my BDP connecting experiences that it’s hard to identify the highlights of the experiences themselves. Producing my first thesis-caliber research paper in an area directly relevant to my field of interest, learning how the recycling operation of a community of 75,000 works from the inside out as UT’s first student recycling coordinator, and getting to feel what the classroom looks like from the professor’s side of the podium as a special teaching assistant for environmental action have all been singular experiences of great value to my personal and professional development.

See also past profiles of Environment students.

To read about Environment students who have participated in Connecting Experiences, see the Environment Connecting Experiences page.