Last week, students in the James Buzzard Leadership Program enjoyed a “HiveMind” experience with Bee Downtown in Durham. 🐝

The experience was designed to serve as a launching point for students to elevate their performance, deepen their relationships, foster a stronger sense of community within their own “hive,” and build lasting morale.

The two-hour program began with an hour-long Hive Tour, where students learned how to carefully open up a hive, use a smoker and more. In addition, there was a keynote with Leigh-Kathryn Bonner `15, founder and CEO of Bee Downtown. During her talk, Leigh-Kathryn discussed lessons from her own career as an entrepreneur and leader.

Students deeply resonated with the experience and walked away with meaningful insights and valuable lessons they could carry forward. One student said, “One thing that really stood out to me was when Leigh-Kathryn was mentioning how bees react when something goes wrong with their hive. Instead of focusing on themselves, they immediately focus on protecting and helping each other so they all survive.”

“This made me think about how important it is for leaders to put others first and support their team, especially during difficult situations. In the future, I want to be a leader who emphasizes being empathetic and considerate of others by taking the time to understand their perspectives and recognize their needs.”

📸: Check out highlights from the experience.

This summer, Oscar Cleaveland had the opportunity to complete a 12-week remote internship with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) as a state and local government market development intern.

During his internship, Oscar worked on two main projects focused on how local governments can use USGBC programs to advance sustainability. One project explored how LEED for Cities can serve as a gateway to broader engagement with USGBC while providing insight into the value of certification for local governments. The other examined how local governments are using LEED for Operations & Maintenance (O+M) to manage and improve the performance of existing buildings.

As a remote intern working with a team spread around the world, Oscar spent his days researching, analyzing data and collaborating with colleagues through Microsoft Teams and email. He also had the opportunity to learn new tools, including Salesforce and Power BI, which became some of the highlights of his experience.

“The experience has reinforced my desire to do work advancing the sustainability of cities and local governments,” Oscar said. “I find the whole field of sustainability within the built environment to be incredibly interesting, and seeing the data about how much of an impact cities and buildings have on the environment makes me understand how needed sustainability is in this area of our everyday lives."

One experience that stood out was the opportunity to meet with the sustainability manager for his home county. After connecting through his work with LEED for Cities, he had the opportunity to learn more about her career, the role of a local government sustainability manager, and potential paths he could pursue based on his interests. She also offered to connect him with sustainability professionals across the state and country.

Oscar is grateful for the experiences, connections, and knowledge he gained throughout his internship and looks forward to applying what he learned as he continues exploring a career in sustainability. 🌱