Hi Fay,
Tell us a bit about yourself.
“Hi there, my name is Fay and I graduated from the TU Delft with a double master’s degree in Materials Science Engineering and Industrial Ecology. I was living in San Francisco for six months working for Cuberg, a start-up with a patent on lithium-ion battery technology for long-range mobility such as aviation. I recently completed my internship there and have returned to the Netherlands!
In 2019, I founded a non-profit organization, Librae, to promote gender equality and diversity among students in STEM, which I have run next to my studies and am passing on to a new team. Besides that, I love going to concerts and am also a surf instructor at Hart Beach in Scheveningen and am very stoked to check out the waves in California!”
Really cool that you’ve founded a non-profit organization! What was your motivation behind this?
“I founded Librae in 2019 because I came to the realization that while companies talk a lot about gender equality and diversity, students were hardly talking about it. Throughout my studies, I always found myself to be the only female in a group project. Oftentimes, male members would automatically assume that I would be the notetaker or not take into consideration my input or ideas. There was one project where I had to constantly repeat myself, yet the other members were just not listening. Once this same idea of mine was proposed by a male member of my group, everyone was listening.”
Why did you apply for Internships in the Valley?
“I was born and raised in Shanghai, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, which is also facing the drastic repercussions of climate change. As a result, I am very passionate about sustainability and am determined to make a change. After 8 years of living in the Netherlands, I was looking for a change in environment and to meet people from different cultures. I’ve always been curious about Silicon Valley and the Bay Area because of its reputation where I can get out of my comfort zone and challenge myself to keep thinking of new perspectives and figure out where I want to go in the future.”
How do you feel about the sustainability presence in the Bay Area? Do you have any tips for students looking for internships in this field?
“There is a sustainability presence but it’s not as strong as in Europe and it’s also pretty difficult to pin down. In Europe, it seems like more companies are working on sustainability, whereas here it feels rather selective, so only specific companies will focus on sustainability. It does feel a lot like greenwashing.
For finding sustainability internships, check the Climatebase website and the Work on Climate Slack channel. There are also climate tech cocktails and the SF Climate Week in April every year.”
What advice do you have for other female students who may feel intimidated or discouraged by the competitive nature of the internship search process?
“I think all women just need to apply. You need to put yourself out there: don’t be afraid to use your network, ask people for help, create posts on LinkedIn, and reach out to people and companies. Check the y combinator website. Substack has some interesting channels. If you get interviews, don’t undersell yourself. Make sure your resume is up to US standards. It really should focus on results and accomplishments. I’m happy to help you review, so please feel free to reach out to me!”
Tell us a bit about your blog.
“I started a blog about my journey from growing up in Shanghai to moving to San Francisco and beyond. My main motivation behind this was to share stories with the hopes that other students can learn from my experiences if they too want to go abroad and are stuck facing the same challenges. Currently, my blog is based on personal experiences during my time in San Francisco. In the long term, I would like to expand this to bring in new perspectives about sustainability and societal topics that don’t often get talked about (i.e. e-waste, food waste, pollution).
Check out Fay’s blog to follow along on her journey in SF here.
“I think all women just need to apply. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and don’t undersell yourself.”
