Q&A with Priya Shrestha

Priya is a student ambassador here to answer your questions. Click here to contact Priya.

Why did you choose Green Process engineering?

I did a lot of research before choosing my discipline of engineering, and when I was looking at the classes I’d take in Green Process, I got really excited. I’ve always been the kind of person who listed “environment” as one of their passions and I also enjoyed taking chemistry all throughout high school. Green Process engineering uses the fundamentals of chemistry while focusing in on being proactive and developing new processes and products that are both ecologically sustainable and economical. The focus is on creating designs that are inherent rather than circumstantial or prevention rather than treatment. This, to me, sounded like a perfect fit.

Why Western Engineering?

The Western Engineering community is one of a kind — there is so much genuine support and encouragement from both faculty and other students. Because of this, I feel at home here. I’ve realized that at the end of the day, any accredited engineering program is going to give you the same degree, but the experience you get will vary. It’s important to like where you’re going to be living and who you’re going to be surrounding yourself with for the next four years (at least). For me, I know that I’ve found where I belong and I am beyond thankful that my string of decisions led me to Western engineering. At Western, engineering really is a team sport.

What is a fun fact about yourself?

I co-write a food-review blog about restaurants in London with one of my friends from high school. Feel free to ask me about London’s food scene!

Can you talk about your extracurricular activities at Western?

I have two roles on the Undergraduate Engineering Society (UES): Third Year Green Process Engineering Representative and Environmental Commissioner. As the Third Year Green Rep, I act as the bridge between Green Process students and the UES, professors, and other faculties. I represent my class at UES Meetings and vote on various proposals by other council members on their behalf. As the Environmental Commissioner, I have the opportunity to organize environmental events and activities throughout the year like Nature Walks and FOG (Fat, Oil, Grease) Cup collection and promotion, and I am working to facilitate the growth of our composting and alternative recycling programs.

This year, I am the Logistics Captain on WECCA (Western Engineering Concrete Canoe Association). I lead general meetings, recruit new members and keep them up-to-date on our happenings, oversee the creation of our technical report and presentation, and act as the first point of contact for WECCA. As a team, we work to design, build, and race a concrete canoe, write a technical report, make a creative display, and present to industry judges about the entire process. Engineering clubs definitely allow you to extend your learning and apply knowledge from the classroom to real life. I remember learning about stress and strain in my first-year Materials course and then going to a WECCA concrete mix later that day and actually helping to perform a tensile strength test —super cool!

I’m also the captain of an intermural volleyball team, a general member on EnviroWestern and the Engineering ChemClub, and I’m an Off-Campus Soph as well. I think extracurricular activities are a great way to get involved, develop interpersonal skills, and make new friends!

How do you manage school-related stress?

I made my own hourly planner to organize my study schedule, classes, extracurricular activities, and even breaks — my entire life is in there! I always make sure to allot time for friends and family and to do things I enjoy. Blocking out specific hours in the day to focus on various tasks really helps me to manage stress because I’m able to take everything in one hour at a time while knowing that I have a plan for the week already outlined.