Hello!

My name is Danielle Russell and I am a first year student here at the University of Pittsburgh. I am pursuing a major in chemical engineering as well as the sustainability certificate. In the future, I hope to use these degrees to work in a career focused around environmental engineering or food and agriculture. Our company visits in the Netherlands touch upon both of these fields and will allow me to further my knowledge and hopefully gain some experience. 

When I am not studying, I stay busy with involvement in the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Theta Tau, a co-ed professional engineering fraternity on campus. I also mentor third through fifth grade girls through Strong Women Strong Girls, a non-profit organization which focuses on female empowerment. In my free time, you can often find me playing volleyball or trying out new restaurants around Pittsburgh. I consider myself to be a foodie and am excited and open to trying any new dish that we may come across while in the Netherlands. 

As my varied interests suggest, I enjoy meeting and interacting with new people. This is one of the many reasons I am excited to participate in Plus3 The Netherlands. I am looking forward to making connections within the group and with those we encounter throughout our travels. I had the opportunity to travel to Ireland with my high school’s music department last summer and still talk regularly with some of the students I met there. Hopefully, I can experience similar connections during this study abroad. Additionally, chemical engineering is a broad and diverse field and I predict that this experience will be a positive initial step in helping me further narrow down my academic and career goals. I am eager to learn more about how business and engineering can be done in a way that takes social and environmental implications into consideration, and am excited to explore every step of this process from initial concept to final customer.