Sustainable Impact in Practice
Make a Difference Through Sustainable Impact in Practice
An Experiential Platform for Applied Sustainability and Systems Leadership
Sustainable Impact in Practice (SIP) is an interdisciplinary experiential learning platform that prepares students to lead across environmental, social, and economic systems. The program enables students to apply sustainability principles through integrated business strategy, engineering systems thinking, and meaningful community engagement.
Structured around problem-based, team-based learning, students work in faculty-guided interdisciplinary teams to address real-world sustainability challenges. Projects integrate systems thinking, data analysis, circular economy strategies, industrial ecology, and sustainable business and engineering decision-making. Through this applied experience, students explore how organizations and communities design, operate, and innovate for long-term environmental resilience, economic viability, and community well-being.
SIP brings together students from across colleges, leveraging the university and surrounding community as a living laboratory for systems innovation and measurable impact.
An interest session about the Leadership Institute will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Register for the session. Current participants and the instructor will be present to answer questions, talk more about what happens in the program, and explain the application process. Application materials are due no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, March 10, 2023. If you have specific questions, you can contact the program director, Brian Bond.
How students can participate
Students may participate through multiple credit-bearing pathways, including:
- Independent study (e.g., SBIO X974 or equivalent departmental course numbers)
- Undergraduate research (e.g., SBIO 2994 or equivalent)
- Approved Honors projects
- Other eligible experiential credit options
This flexible structure allows students from any major to integrate participation into their academic plan while gaining hands-on experience in sustainability-focused leadership and applied systems innovation.
Eligibility
To participate, students must:
- Be a rising sophomore in any major. (Graduate students may also apply and receive graduate credit.)
- Demonstrate strong interest in sustainability, sustainable business strategy, engineering systems, environmental resilience, and/or community well-being.
- Be motivated to engage in collaborative, problem-based experiential work that applies classroom learning to real-world sustainability challenges.
Learn More
A virtual interest session is held each fall semester. Once the 2026 session is scheduled, a registration link will be posted here.
For additional information, please contact Kiara Winans at kswinans@vt.edu
Students develop sustainable impact solutions for a greener campus
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We are grateful for your support of the Sustainable Impact in Practice
If you’re interested in hosting a future cohort of Sustainable Impact in Practice students at your agency or organization, please contact Kiara Winans, the program’s director, at kswinans@vt.edu.
To support our ongoing impacts through a philanthropic gift, please reach out to Andrew Ickes, Assistant Dean of Advancement, at aickes@vt.edu.