Grace Kortum ’21, Geosciences

Grace Kortum ’21

Major

Geosciences

Project Title

Corporate Pollution Accountability in the Los Angeles Grocery Sector

Certificate(s): Finance, Statistics and Machine Learning

I worked with the Corporate Pollution Accountability Project at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to develop methods for attributing emissions from the movement of goods to specific companies. As a starting point, I worked on a case study to quantify emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides from trucking related to the grocery sector in Los Angeles. These pollutants diminish local air quality and can cause community health problems. Although this project is still in progress, its results ultimately may have widespread applications such as supporting the advocacy efforts of local community groups, allowing consumers to make more informed decisions about where they shop, and helping companies assess the benefits of transitioning their truck fleets to electric vehicles. I valued the opportunity to analyze new topics, from vehicle electrification to grocery distribution, as well as the challenge of thinking about how to develop frameworks that assess and draw conclusions from limited data. In addition, it was great to learn more about the EDF as an organization and all of the important work that is being done there across different groups and departments. Thank you to the High Meadows Environmental Institute and EDF for this wonderful experience!