Hey there! I’m Neha, age 19 from Surrey, and I took part in the 2018 Catalyst Bootcamp.

At the moment, I am just finishing first year of university at Royal Holloway, University of London and have been really enjoying studying Geography BSc. Outside of my studies, I have been involved in many different projects including leading a Volunteering Project on campus and being a student rep. I’ve also been lucky enough to find a part-time job at the campus fruit & veg market, which really feeds into my interest on sustainable agriculture practice and food consumption.

My dream job would be ecology or human welfare based, which I am currently gaining experience from by doing a summer internship with Macmillan. The Catalyst Bootcamp showed me that ‘sustainability’ or ‘environmental’ type jobs can vary massively and aren’t limited to the stereotype of working with a green NGO. Both the mentoring and the speed-date style networking activity with professionals at the Bootcamp proved this to me, and I had so much fun being involved with them.

 

I initially came to the Bootcamp because I find it really exciting meeting new people, and discussing environmental issues and their perspectives on them!

Furthermore, I’ve struggled to find information on getting into environmental work since my interest developed, and the opportunity to have an intensive few days where the information and thoughts from many environmental and sustainability professionals was available seemed unreal and amazing.

 

Since the Bootcamp, I have found myself consciously applying for opportunities that I would otherwise be too scared to apply for because of the confidence boost it gave me. The other main thing I learnt was that it can be hard to get into NGO/eco paid roles, thus any experience you can build up now will give you the edge and help you get the position you want. Everyone was so incredibly friendly and kind, the Bootcamp is the perfect place to attend regardless of where you are at on your sustainability journey 😊

 

To book a place on this year’s Catalyst Bootcamp on 24-26th July in Bristol visit