With Gratitude and Excitement: A New Chapter for Sustainability at Colgate

This fall marks a time of transition, gratitude, and excitement for Colgate's Office of Sustainability.

On Aug. 14, we said farewell to Julia Sparks after four remarkable years as assistant director of sustainability and program coordinator for environmental studies. Julia left Colgate to pursue a master of landscape architecture at SUNY ESF, carrying with her an extraordinary legacy of mentorship, community building, and service.

Julia helped strengthen programs across campus, from the Sustainability Internship Program and Free Store to student retreats, outdoor experiences, and countless sustainability events and initiatives. Yet her greatest impact lives in the students she mentored and inspired. Julia brought optimism, creativity, kindness, and an infectious enthusiasm to everything she did, leaving our programs and our community stronger because she was here. We remain deeply grateful for all she gave to Colgate and will be cheering her on in this next chapter.

On Oct. 26, we are delighted to begin another chapter as we welcome Meredith DiIoia to Colgate.

Meredith joins us from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, where she served as senior specialist in the Office of Sustainability and Office of Project Delivery, leading sustainability initiatives, communications, and engagement programs while supporting institutionwide projects. She holds an MSc in sustainability transitions from the University of Aberdeen and a BA in global environments and sustainability from the University of Virginia.

Meredith brings a wonderful combination of sustainability experience, collaboration, project management, and enthusiasm for working with students. She is also looking forward to exploring her new home, playing volleyball, and, in her words, "losing at trivia."

We are tremendously grateful for the legacy Julia leaves behind and equally excited to welcome Meredith and discover what this next chapter will bring.