Student Spotlight: Rowena Shivam

What made you choose to study the Sustainable Built Environments, Energy and Resources BSc and how are you finding the course?

I have been passionate about the environment since I first watched ‘Planet Earth’ when I was 3 years old! I knew when applying to university that I wanted to pursue degrees that championed sustainability. What appealed to me most about UCL’s Sustainable Built Environments, Energy and Resources programme was its interdisciplinary approach to sustainability, incorporating the Economics that I grew to love at A Level as well as more geographical City Challenges and fundamental studies of Mathematics and Physics.

The first year of this programme has been a rollercoaster. Our very first week was full of activities including group presentations, a development-focussed walking tour of London and a boat trip down the River Thames! After these initial opportunities to make friends and get to know our staff, settling in was easy. A particular highlight of the year was our residential field trip to the Sustainability Centre in Hampshire. Alongside attending lectures in Environmental Economics, Policy, Mathematics, Energy Systems, Buildings and City Challenges, and submitting group coursework projects, my personal tutor also encouraged me to apply for the Laidlaw Research and Leadership Scholarship. I am now a part of the 2025 cohort but I would not have been able to pursue this opportunity without the support of the SBEER programme leads. They gave me the confidence to take my learning into the wider world, which has now led me to my UN fellowship.

What do you hope to do in the future? 

I hope to put my education to good use as a Sustainability Consultant, making tangible change in our world. I would like to work across a wide range of sectors including finance, engineering and maybe one day I’ll get to work for the United Nations! I am particularly passionate about sustainable policy and hope to support the transition to new global targets after the UN Sustainable Development Goals expire in 2030.

Congratulations on joining the UN SDSN Youth Local Pathways Fellowship, could you tell us about the programme?

The United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network Youth Local Pathways Fellowship is a programme that started in 2015 to empower young urban leaders to champion Sustainable Development Goal 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) through 10 months of training, mentorship, practical projects and a global stage of conferences and symposiums.

The Local Pathways Fellowship seeks to provide young leaders with the tools, a platform and a guiding framework for action, and connect them with leading urban development experts and practitioners. Since its inception, this programme has nurtured over 700 alumni across more than 100 cities worldwide. Many of these fellows have gone on to become influential urban planners, policymakers, and sustainability advocates.

How will you be involved and what do you hope to gain from the experience?

I am delighted to be one of 124 fellows selected from 1500 international applicants aged 18-35 and the youngest of the 2025 cohort. I am very excited to use the knowledge and skills I have developed in the first year of my BSc/MEng in Sustainable Built Environment, Energy and Resources with UCL’s Bartlett School to make tangible, positive change to London’s urban environments.

This year, LPF also has a new partnership with the Institute for Humane Education (IHE). I will receive training on the Solutionary Framework, equipping me with the tools to develop scalable, ethical solutions to urban challenges. This collaboration strengthens the fellowship’s impact and ensures fellows have the resources to create lasting change in our communities. So far, we have had a webinar from Steve Cochrane and Dr Julie Meltzer on solutionary changemaking and I have completed online modules on Urban Opportunities and Systems. I have also chosen the focus area for my practical project – London’s digital economy and power consumption. The fellowship will equip me with the skills I need to tackle this and other urban issues in London. I look forward to continuing to learn, grow and represent London’s Global University through this incredible opportunity.

What advice would you give to someone looking to apply to a similar programme or fellowship?

When I first came to UCL, adjusting to university life was tricky. I missed my family and my degree was much more challenging than I thought it would be! The best thing I did was to keep talking to people. I have always been an outgoing person but I have been known to take on one too many things at a time – getting advice from my personal tutor, second year students and my friends helped me find a balance of academic work, leadership roles and down-time that suits me. It was through building these relationships that I also developed the support network I needed to take on new opportunities – I was voted in as an Academic Representative for my cohort, then I became a Laidlaw Scholar and now I have joined an international fellowship!

Whatever you do, don’t stop applying for more opportunities. Application processes can be exhausting – during my first term I applied to several financial spring insight weeks alongside my peers with no success - but sometimes rejection is just a temporary redirection. I am thoroughly enjoying my deep dive into sustainable policy research this year and I look forward to using the transferrable skills this summer in my internship with the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet as well as the years to come, be it in finance, consultancy or wherever life takes me!