
STUDENT COMMUNITY
The M.S. in Sustainability Management program’s students represent a cross-section of the industries and organizations currently incorporating sustainable initiatives into their day-to-day operations as well as those who are looking to make a career switch. The program’s students are dedicated not only to mastering the theory and science of sustainability, they are passionate about putting their education into practice.


Student Groups
Student Spotlights

1/7/25
Student Spotlight: A Journey of Peace, Sustainability, and Learning in Hiroshima
Ellie Hislop, Final Semester Sustainability Management Master’s Candidate, School of Professional Studies highlights the academic and personal growth found whilst participating in the Clinic on Conflict and Collaboration in Natural Resource Management: Advancing Positive Peace and the SDGs. An intensive two-week program hosted in Japan by Hiroshima University in partnership with the Sasakawa Peace Foundation. Hislop details how the trip taught her no matter the scale, the work on sustainability starts with action.

4/26/24
From Fission to Fusion: A Sustainability Student’s Quest for a Greener Future
Brian Kim, a health physicist at Columbia University, is pursuing a Master’s in Sustainability Management to focus on climate solutions. With a background in nuclear engineering from Oregon State, he engages with groups like RESCUE and Build It Green. Inspired by natural disasters, Kim aims to graduate in spring 2025, enhancing his work on safe radioactive material use.

3/21/24
Sustainability Management Student Addresses Gender Disparity in the COP29 Climate Committee
Sanaya Kriplani, a Master’s student in Sustainability Management, highlights the gender disparity in the COP29 climate committee, initially with 28 men and no women, later adjusted to 29 men and 12 women. She stresses that the absence of women in key roles undermines COP29’s legitimacy, as gender diversity is crucial for effective climate policy.

3/8/24
Sustainability Management Student Receives Social Justice Mini-Grant
Kristen Dillard, a Sustainability Management (SUMA) student at the School of Professional Studies, was recently named one of 12 recipients of the annual Social Justice Mini-Grant. She plans to use the mini-grant to acquire production tools and gain skills for her sustainability advocacy podcast, "GreenCoast: Uniting Sustainability and Environmental Justice from East to West".

11/27/23
Frank Agwuncha Is Working, Teaching, and Wrapping Up a Master's in Sustainability
Working as a geologist and in project management at Shell, ignited Frank Agwuncha's passion for sustainability, energy, and climate issues. His attraction to the MS in Sustainability Management (SUMA) program at Columbia SPS stems from its holistic curriculum, which integrates business, science, and environmental studies. He hopes to utilise his degree to re-enter the workforce as a sustainability practitioner and course associate in Cost Benefit Analysis.