Â鶹app

The International Changemaker Grant is a unique immersive opportunity at UNH for interdisciplinary student teams to collaborate with international NGOs and social enterprises to create global sustainability solutions. 

Mentored by UNH faculty and staff, five student teams are preparing to travel this summer to collaborate with organizations working on initiatives ranging from energy insecurity and community resilience to plastic waste and accessible sanitation at schools. Students will be fostering long-term international collaborations for solutions while strengthening their own professional and problem-solving skills. 

UNH's Sustainability Institute is thankful to the visionary leadership of S. Melvin Rines ’47, whose generous support has been instrumental and the Emeriti Council of the UNH Foundation Board that has taken a pioneering step by establishing this fund. Additionally, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Alnoba Lewis Family Global Service Initiative Fund for their invaluable contribution in making this initiative a reality. This endeavor is aimed at empowering groups of UNH students to partake in impactful international service projects, where they hone their knowledge and skills in sustainable development while creating positive impacts for communities around the globe.

Meet the Student Teams and Partner Organizations  

Team: Full Bucket Foundation​ – Addressing energy insecurity and community self-reliance 

Partnering with , this team will collaborate to help design and implement a solar panel and drip irrigation system for a boarding school in Senegal, ultimately improving education, agricultural efficiency, food security, and community self-reliance. 

​UNH Faculty Mentor: Deni Hatch, Lecturer, Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics 

Student Team: 

Jesus La Paz ’26, Philosophy and Justice Studies 

Syeda Khadija Haq ’26, Economics  

Pedro Doukas ’26, Mechanical Engineering  

Jack McCann ’27, Mechanical Engineering  

Team: Kenya Connect – Marketing micro-enterprises to build community resilience 

Partnering with , this team will collaborate to help develop a business and marketing plan for local hand-crafted goods whose profits cover school fees for children in the community, ultimately improving reliable access to education in rural Kenya. 

UNH Faculty Mentor: Shuili Du, Professor, Marketing, Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics 

Student Team: 

Nicole Deneau ‘26, Marketing 

Aliana Carbone ‘25, Business Administration: Management 

Ava Graham ‘26, Wildlife Biology & Conservation 

Ella Kolber ‘25, Business Management 

Will Oglesby ‘25, Recreation Management and Policy 

James Baiocchi ‘25, Marketing 

Team: Kenya Connect – Designing accessible sanitation for Wamunyu Special School 

A second team will be collaborating with Kenya Connect to help design more accessible learning environments for students with disabilities to improve access to education in rural Kenya.  

UNH Faculty Mentors:  

John Wilcox, Clinical Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy, College of Health and Human Services 

Amy VanCamp, Clinical Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy, College of Health and Human Services 

Student Team: 

Livia Souza ‘26, Occupational Therapy 

Maya Wingsted ’27, Occupational Therapy 

Ella Johnsen ’27, Occupational Therapy 

Sarah Potter ’27, Occupational Therapy 

Max McKenney’25, Mechanical Engineering 

Abigail Tobin ‘27, Occupational Therapy 

Jenna McFadden ‘27, Occupational Therapy 

Team: Wildlife Conservation Society of Cambodia - Preventing deforestation and improving farmer livelihoods 

This team will collaborate with to map deforestation, reforestation, and habitat fragmentation in Keo Seima, an ecologically and culturally significant protected sanctuary to contribute to protecting the ecosystems, wildlife, and landscapes important to indigenous tribes within Keo Seima. 

UNH Faculty Mentor: Benjamin Fraser, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Natural Resources and the Environment, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture 

Student Team: 

Alexandra Shore ’26, Environmental Science: Ecosystems  

Jaren Unzen ’26, Computer Science (Algorithms) and International Affairs 

Hunter Moore ’25, Natural Resources and the Environment 

Maeve Kelley ’25, Wildlife and Conservation Biology 

Team: Takataka Plastics - Recycled plastic product innovations and marketing to support community recycling efforts 

Students will be collaborating with  to develop a business and marketing plan for current recycled plastic products and designing an engineering makerspace for new recycled plastic products, aiming to reduce plastic waste while building economic opportunities in Uganda.  

UNH Faculty Mentor: Erin Hale, Program Director, Sustainability Dual Major 

Student Team: 

Cara Begley ’27, Biomedical Science: Medical Microbiology  

Ethan Keller ’27, Accounting and Finance 

Erick Angwenyi '28, Accounting

Pedro Doukas ’26, Mechanical Engineering