WATERVILLE, Maine — On Friday, Colby College wrapped up what professors hope will become an annual course that takes students far away from the classroom.
A group of four students and their professor, Alison Beyea, had just returned from Bilbao, Spain, where they spent a week sightseeing and bonding. The group also spent many hours at the headquarters of Iberdrola, the parent company of Avangrid, which owns CMP.
Friday, the students gave a mock sustainability lecture to company execs and their professors.
"Getting the opportunity to go to Spain and meet these professionals at the top of their field was such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," sophomore Koto Yamada said.
"It gave me hope because the people that I talked to were really thinking about these issues that we hold dear," sophomore Zane Schiffman, added.
Beyea and other staff organized the course with Avangrid VP of Sustainability Laney Brown, a Colby alumna.
Each January, Colby encourages its students to spend the month off campus, diving into studies that excite them, and Beyea was thrilled when the Spanish plans came together.
"We're always thinking about ways that we can get students to both understand the world they live in here in Maine, but also on a global level," Beyea said. "So, once we realized we could do both, it was a pretty amazing moment."
Brown was impressed by the students' knowledge and ambition before they even walked into a boardroom.
"I think these kids were already looking at the issues in Maine, and looking at and trying to understand energy policy," she said.
Beyea and Brown said they were already starting to plan a trip for 2025.