Trailblazing Queens engineer honored for driving diversity in sustainability field
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Queens native and diversity advocate Cristina Garcia won an award for her role promoting inclusivity.
Photo courtesy of Cristina Garcia
By Rachel Vick
After noticing a severe lack of diversity in the field of sustainability, environmental engineer Cristina Garcia rolled up her sleeves and got to work recruiting.
Garcia, a Queens native, created a program to train students at her alma mater City College on clean energy technology and energy efficiency while she worked for the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability. She later founded Latinos in Sustainability, a subset of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers to highlight the potential of a career in sustainability.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Education & Empowerment program recognized Garcia for her work. The agency presented Garcia with a C3E award for advocacy.
“These communities, the same marginalized communities that are disproportionately affected are disproportionately excluded from the conversation about climate change,” said Garcia, now the assistant director of the Building Electrification Initiative. “That's what I’ve been trying to do — to be that bridge for inclusivity for everyone.”
She said her approach to advocacy is shaped by her insights as a first generation college graduate and a native New Yorker who experienced firsthand the complicated schedules facing many public college students.
CUNY students miss out on internships and career opportunities more easily obtained by wealthier students at private universities like NYU, she said. Access to opportunity “is not reflective of grades, intelligence or passion, but the socioeconomic situation you came from,” Garcia said
“Some students choose CUNYs for financial benefit, who have to stay at home, have to keep jobs and help parents, that shouldn’t impact your future career,” she said.
Garcia began working with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers in 2017 and focused on engaging students and young professionals through events that showcase the multitudes of engineering paths within the field of sustainability. She also worked to connect them with established Latino professionals.
Garcia said local community members are the people best suited to shape the future of clean energy in New York City, but the current workforce is not representative of the diversity that makes New York City.”
“How can we commit to serving NYC when we don’t look like NYC? I can’t speak for other cities but there's no excuse here,” she said.
Garcia and the seven other award recipients will receive their prizes during a ceremony accompanied by a series of presentations from leaders in the clean energy industry on Dec. 8 and 9. All of the honorees are women.
She said she hopes her work continues to inspire students and aspiring engineers.
“Some of them are going to have to be pioneers and first on the ground and pave the way for those behind,” Garcia said.
“It is unfortunate because it’s much easier when the road is paved, but in my experience it can be rewarding and a real sense of purpose to feel like you're making an impact and doing something for your people that might ease their path.”
