The Team


Who We Are

We are a student led project team that designs and builds pedestrian footbridges for rurally isolated communities. Our team of 33 passionate students works together to build a safe and innovative bridge for the betterment of isolated communities.

The Leads!

Meet The Leads!

Get to know Juliette Despirito, our PM! <br><br> Junior studying Civil Engineering with a concentration in infrastructure. Enjoys reading, wakeboarding, skiing, and learning to crochet.

Juliette DeSpirito

Project Manager

Junior studying Biological Sciences.

Christine Yang

Admin Lead

Junior studying Environmental Engineering. Enjoys cooking, baking, and anything crafty. Interests include being an AEW facilitator, part of the Alpha Chi Sigma Chemistry Fraternity, and lab research studying microbial phosphorus cycling. Fun fact: baked pumpkin bread 10 times in one month.

Sara buchta

WASH Lead

Junior studying in Civil Engineering. Enjoys playing Chinese flute and Chinese yoyo, board games, video games and watching movies. Fun fact: has a brother who is 16 years younger.

Fair Shen

Bridge Lead

Junior studying Mechanical Engineering. Enjoys traveling, shopping, binging Netflix. Fun fact: has a shih tzu named Chubby.

Jennifer Ahn

Cultural Lead

Junior studying Chemical Engineering. Enjoys creating art and traveling in free time.

Keri Yamaguchi

Business Lead

Engineering Team

The engineering subteam is responsible for designing the bridge implemented during the summer.
This includes, selecting and surveying the site, determining the strongest materials needed
and performing structural analysis!

Meet Grace Lo! <br><br> Junior studying Electrical and Computer Engineering. Is a cheese connoisseur and loves to bake.

Grace Lo

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Avery Colburn! <br><br> Senior studying Electrical and Computer Engineering, minoring in Computer Science. Fun fact: her favorite study spot on campus is Upson!

Avery Colburn

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Abigail Perree! <br><br> Senior studying in Environmental Engineering and minoring in Mechanical Engineering. Fun fact: her Siswati name is Vumile - to agree to help!

Abigail Perree

Engineering Subteam Member

Junior studying Operations Research. Interests include research focusing on sustainability in hospitals. Enjoys spending time with friends and playing the guitar.

Jackson Carlberg

Engineering Subteam Member

Junior studying civil engineering with a minor in inequality studies. I am on the engineering bridge subteam and I am the construction manager for the 2024 bridge project! I love to rock climb and crochet along with other arts and crafts. I am also a social chair for Cog Dog theater troupe at Cornell and work at Lindseth climbing center and as a TA. A fun fact about me is I've hiked the tallest mountatin in Ireland.

Isabel Kossoy

Engineering Subteam Member

Introducing Amy Lyman !<br><br> Sophomore studying Civil Engineering. Enjoys skiing, running, crocheting, reading, and welding.

Amy Lyman

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Zoe Bishop! Sophomore studying Mechanical Engineering. Interests include the Cornell club soccer and club ultimate (wild roses) teams and the diversity outreach coordinator for SWE. Enjoys rock climbing, exploring the outdoors through backpacking, playing board games, and cooking. Fun fact: was a contestant at the Food Network Kids BBQ Championship show when I was younger.

Zoe Bishop

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Zhuo Qi Chen! Freshman undecided major, who is part of the WASH engineering sub-team and previously also on the cultural subteam!

Zhuo Qi Chen

Engineering Subteam Member

Freshman studying Mechanical Engineering. Enjoys rock climbing, learning the guitar. Interests include Illuminations Traditional Chinese Dance group. Fun fact: grew up in Ithaca!

Anna Fulbright

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Greg Svensson! Freshman studying Mechanical Engineering. Enjoys movies, weightlifting, and skiing. Fun fact: I have two black labs.

Greg Svensson

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Maria Gravini! Enjoys the outdoors, spending time with family and friends, and trying new coffee shops. Fun fact: has a golden doodle puppy named Manolo.

Maria Gravini

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Violeta Egan! Freshman studying Environmental Engineering. Enjoys dancing, hiking, baking, trying new foods, and traveling.

Violeta Egan

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Gloria Zhang! Freshman studying Biomedical Engineering, with interdisciplinary interests. Enjoys exploring the world through traveling, reading, seeking adventure in activities like rock climbing and snowboarding, and experimenting with new recipes and flavors in the kitchen.

Gloria Zhang

Engineering Subteam Member

Introducing Chakeb Charbel!<br><br> Sophomore studying Civil Engineering. Enjoys going to the gym, playing chess, and playing tennis.

Chakeb Charbel

Engineering Subteam Member

Meet Abbie BM Jobe! <br><br> Sophomore studying in Agricultural Sciences and minoring in Business. Enjoys anything fashion related, themed parties, and mangoes.

Abbie BM Jobe

Engineering Subteam Member

Business Team

The business subteam is responsible for the promotion of the organization as well as maintaining relationships with our sponsors.
This subteam is the backbone of the organization because they raise the money needed in order to build.

Meet Aniha Kuninti! <br><br> Sophomore studying Information Science. Interests include AOE and the Big Red Raas dance team. Fun fact: loves to weightlift.

Aniha Kuninti

Business Subteam Member

Meet Hana Mariappa! <br><br> Sophomore studying in Operations Research and Information Engineering. Involvements include the registrar scheduling team. Enjoys baking, hiking, and watching TV.

Hana Mariappa

Business Subteam Member

Meet Kenza Daoudi! <br><br> Freshman studying Computer Science and Economics (at CAS where I am a Milstein and Davis scholar. As part of EIA's business sub-team, I am responsible for website management and corporate sponsorships. Enjoys different music genres from afro beats to house music, traveling and learning about different cultures. Fun fact: lived in 3 different countries so far.

Kenza Daoudi

Business Subteam Member

Meet Nichole Zheng! <br><br> Freshman studying Operation Research Engineering. Enjoys listening to music, watching reality shows/cdramas and watching sunsets. Fun fact: loves strawberry ice cream.

Nichole Zheng

Business Subteam Member

Say hey to Sally Park! <br><br> Senior studying Information Science and minoring in English. Enjoys reading and being involved in Emmaus Road Church on campus.

Sally Park

Business Subteam Member

Cultural Team

The cultural subteam is responsible for developing lessons for the entire team to better understand the culture of the country that we will be building at the following summer. They hold biweekly workshops and expose the team to the country's language and cultural activities!

Senior studying Civil Engineering. Interests include team dinners, hiking, knitting, and enjoying sunsets.<br><br>

Talia August

Cultural Subteam Member

Meet Krasimira Kamenova! <br><br> Junior studying in Civil Engineering, minoring in Linguistics and Mechanical Engineering. Interests include being the VP of the theatre troupe Cog Dog, and research at the civE lab investigating alternatives to concrete. Fun fact: has four cats and a puppy!

Krasimira Kamenova

Cultural Subteam Member

Meet Ariana Samuels! <br><br> Sophomore studying Biomedical Engineering. Interests include NSBE and a book club. Enjoys hiking, painting, and watching reality TV shows with friends.

Ariana Samuels

Cultural Subteam Member

Meet Xindi Weng! <br><br> Freshman studying Global Development. Enjoys volleyball, fitness, playing the electric guitar, and traveling. Fun Fact: enjoyed over 20 sunsets on the slope last semester.

Xindi Weng

Cultural Subteam Member

Meet Carisa Zheng! <br><br> Freshman studying in CS and Anthropology. Enjoys crocheting and binging TV Shows.

Carisa Zheng

Cultural Subteam Member

Meet Cristian Avelar-Romero! <br><br> Sophomore studying Mechanical Engineering. Interests include Cornell Traditions and mentoring as part of CU EMpower. Enjoys playing soccer, creating ceramic arts, and listening to music. Fun fact: is Salvadoran.

Cristian Avelar-Romero

Cultural Subteam Member