College of Idaho Student Helps Nurture Global Environmental Blog

Blogster Kevin Xu

[College of Idaho News Release]

College of Idaho senior Kevin Xu is a double major in finance and mathematics. Xu will graduate in May, but he already is using his financial training from the C of I to help another of his passions: the environment.

Xu works as the Chief Financial Officer of the online organization Collegiate Climate Collaboration (CCC), which is committed to raising awareness and fostering climate change-related discussion and debate amongst the international college community. The CCC globally brings college students together to share ideas, opinions and solutions to global climate change and other environmental issues.

CCC was established in September of 2010, and Xu has been involved since July, when he was approached by a friend who also is involved in the organization.

“Because of my strong interest in the environment movement, I was recruited as an administrator and a contributing writer for the CCC,” Xu said.

While it has been hard work getting the CCC on its feet, the organization is off to a good start. After just 15 months, there are approximately 26 contributing writers from colleges across the country, including Stanford, UCLA, Princeton and The College of Idaho. According to Xu, the CCC’s future plans include gaining professional advisors and academic contributors, adding a list of book and video recommendations to the website, and eventually building partnerships with major climate and environmental non-government organizations.

Xu’s written contributions to the online forum are aimed at environmentally-interested readers, but the articles also are friendly to those who are new to the environmental movement. In articles such as “Is the Carbon Price Right?” and “Green it up now, Uncle Sam,” Xu is careful to explain concepts to new readers and outline any controversies involved, a valuable asset for an organization seeking to raise awareness.

As graduation nears, Xu is applying to masters programs across the country in financial mathematics. Originally from Shanghai, Xu plans to return to his native China after he finishes graduate school and operate a venture capital firm in renewable energy in China and the U.S. Until then, he is happy with his role of raising environmental awareness among college students and building a strong foundation for his future career in environmental finance.