Coming from Singapore, a country that has historically relied on Malaysia for much of its water supply, Trinetta Chong understands the problems that accompany limited natural resources.
“Trying to achieve self-sustainability in our water supply means turning to alternative sources such as desalination and wastewater reclamation,” Trinetta explained. “While these technologies help to supplement our water supply, they consume very high amounts of energy.”
This presents a challenge for Singapore and countries like it around the world that are trying to both meet its water demands and limit energy consumption. The dilemma motivated Trinetta’s interests in environmental policy topics, such as the energy-water nexus, green initiatives and sustainable development.
After studying communications at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and obtaining a Masters of Public Policy from the Goldman School at the University of California Berkeley, Trinetta worked with the International Food Policy Research Institute. There, she examined the impact of weather shocks on nutrition in Bangladesh.
This experience added to Trinetta’s knowledge on climate change and prepared her well for her Pre-Doctoral Fellowship at EPIC, where she is working primarily on the Social Cost of Carbon project with Michael Greenstone.
“My past experience relates well to the Social Cost of Carbon project, which demonstrates the economic and social impacts of weather variation on various sectors, and adds to a growing body of research that highlights the consequences of climate change,” she said.
While at EPIC, Trinetta looks forward to gaining experience with experts and further developing her skills in data manipulation and analysis within the field of energy and environment.