Kimberlee Robertella Glinka (2010) discovers the importance of "stakeholder buy-in" during her collaborative learning experience in Malta

She didn’t know where it would take her, but Kimberlee (Kim) Robertella Glinka (2010) has no regrets about traveling to Malta to participate in a brand new JMU Graduate Program.  Kim says she was the first applicant to the inaugural cohort of the Integrated Science and Technology (ISAT) program in Sustainable Environmental Resource Management taught in partnership with the University of Malta.

After earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management at Penn State, Kim held management, marketing and communications positions at companies that focused on renewable energy.  Passionate about the intersection of business and environmental sustainability, she was seeking ways to advance her career.

The interdisciplinary nature of the ISAT master’s program was appealing to her.  She was interested in the problems addressed by the program.  She also valued the opportunity to learn from professors and students from a wide range of fields, including the sciences, engineering, and mathematics, as well as the political and social sciences, international affairs, among others.  The multidisciplinary nature of this program was one of the stand-out experiences for her.  Throughout the program she learned how important it is to work on projects across disciplines.

During the program, as teams of students and faculty collaborated on projects, she saw how important it was to obtain stakeholder buy-in for a project to be successful.  Individuals sometimes had diametrically opposite perspectives at the start of a project, so for the enterprise to be successful, it was critical that all stakeholders be engaged in continuous dialog.

When reflecting about her experience, Kim noted the significance of learning about sustainable resource management on a small island, where the boundaries of the island create a brilliant real-world laboratory for students.  In an island ecosystem, soil, water and other resources are limited, and waste management is critical.  It is far too easy to expend vital resources, and all too simple to contaminate what is available.  The island of Malta is a wonderful learning laboratory.

Kimberlee Robertella Glinka currently serves as the Associate Director for the Center for Social Value Creation at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland.  The center works with students, faculty and business partners to help balance profits and the public good.  They promote business models that leverage cross-disciplinary collaboration and encourage market-based problem solving to create economic prosperity and social and environmental well-being.

The JMU Malta Program is now being redeveloped.  It has been renamed “Environmental Management and Sustainability.”  The fall 2015 program is being planned for 18 students.  The program now enables students to choose electives, and can be completed in 12 months, running from September to August.  According to Program Director, Dr. Maria Papadakis, the program is intensive. “It’s a full time job.”  However, there is also time available for sightseeing and enjoying the surroundings.  After all, the program is on a Mediterranean island, not far from Italy.  Information about the program.

When asked if she had any advice to prospective students, Kim said that she advises individuals interested in environmental sustainability not be dissuaded if they don’t have a deep scientific background. The program includes technical and scientific aspects, but she found faculty and fellow students to be very supportive, and the effort needed to develop necessary skills was quite worthwhile.