Waldvogel Works on LANL Sustainability and Zero-Carbon Plans

Genna Waldvogel (MS ‘17) took a somewhat non-traditional route to her current position as a sustainability program team leader at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico. Prior to earning her master’s degree at CEE, she spent four years teaching high school science. She explains that the skills she gained as a teacher and during her time as a CEE graduate student have given her a unique ability to solve advanced problems. 

In her current position at LANL, she’s able to fulfill what she calls her passion—solving problems while making processes more efficient. Waldvogel manages the Sustainability Program, four employees, and a $3M budget. She also works in a multidisciplinary environment. “I have been lucky enough to participate in a variety of research projects and had to opportunity to collaborate with a variety of professionals from multiple disciplines,” she says. 

Waldvogel is grateful for the support and mentorship of CEE Professors Greg Lowry, Jeanne VanBriesen, and Deb Lange, who made a big impact on her time as a graduate student. While at the university, Waldvogel worked with VanBriesen and two other students to assess anthropogenic bromide loads in the Monongahela River Basin and its contribution to bromide concentrations at drinking water intake

During her time at LANL, she’s put her engineering experience to work on the laboratory’s site sustainability plan, created projects or programs that increased water and energy efficiency, and managed the sustainable buildings program. Waldvogel has also implemented DOE and executive orders including a zero-carbon plan, 100% renewable energy, a vulnerability and resilience assessment, and a climate action plan. 

She began her experience at the laboratory as a civil engineer, working part-time with the sustainability team as a laboratory ventilation SME. Waldvogel adds that her education at CEE helped her to jump into her new responsibilities and pick up new skills quickly when needed. “CEE prepared me for the diverse challenges I faced at LANL. I was very prepared for my civil work.”