Jen Adachi ’24

Before coming to Yale, I worked in corporate sustainability for Recology, a San Francisco-based waste, recycling, and composting company. I worked with cross-functional teams to improve operations, including helping the company transition to renewable fleet fuels and implementing a companywide green purchasing plan. I’m passionate about addressing climate, waste, and natural resource issues, and I hope to drive impact by making drastic operational changes in the private sector.

I pursued an MBA to develop the skills to make me a more effective manager in the private sector. Corporate sustainability work relies on generating buy-in from various stakeholders, and it will be critical for me to be able to “speak the language of business.” I wanted to develop a deeper understanding of finance, economics, accounting, and marketing to help me communicate with different stakeholders, gain perspectives, and make better management decision.

SOM stood out because of its diverse, passionate student body and its close relationship with Yale School of the Environment and other Yale graduate schools. I’ve been involved with the Business and the Environment Club, serving on the social and career committee career committees. It’s been fulfilling putting on events that connect students interested in sustainability. I’ve also worked part-time at the Yale Center for Business and Environment, and I’ve loved the career and community sessions they organize.

I loved the Uruguay International Experience class last spring. I learned so much from our professor, Lorenzo Caliendo, showing us around his home country, and from our site visits to companies, governments, and nonprofits. It was great to experience the culture, meet so many different local people, and learn about sustainability and economics in Uruguay. I was also inspired by the curiosity and engagement of my SOM classmates and loved forming deeper connections with them.