It’s one thing to see natural disasters on the news but another to experience them firsthand, says Cassidy Laffey.
During her sophomore year as a University of Pittsburgh student, she participated in a study abroad trip to Brazil. During her stay there, a catastrophic flood left thousands of residents in the Porto Alegre area homeless and in need.
In that situation, Laffey — who graduates Pitt on Sunday with a bachelor’s in environmental engineering — stepped up to assist.
It also was a spark for a future career she plans in water treatment sustainability.
“It helped me put things into perspective,” said Laffey, 22. “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do, and the worst thing I’ve ever seen.”
Laffey said she became interested in sustainability and the environment as a high school student. She graduated from Shaler Area in 2022.
“In high school, we had a great sustainability class,” she said. “That sparked my interest for the environment and put the importance of our planet into my head. I know I wanted to do something to help, but didn’t know what that would look like.”
In spring 2024, Laffey participated in the Exploration of Energy and Electrification in Brazil study abroad program.
When the group arrived in Rio Grande do Sul in late April of that year, 150,000 south Brazilians were displaced because of flooding. By mid-May, the International Labor Organization estimated that number at around 700,000.
Pitt had partnered with Unisinos, a Brazilian university, for its project. But on May 4, Unisinos shut down operations and opened its doors to people displaced by flooding.
As Pitt students helped with recovery efforts at Unisinos, Laffey organized clothes donations. She remember that wasn’t easy.
“On top of all the distress of people who had their lives upended, there was a language barrier,” she said.
The experience had an impact on Laffey’s future plans. Upon graduation, Laffey will pursue a master’s in sustainable engineering at Pitt. She would like to work with water treatment facilities.
“It started with realizing how powerful water is, and if a community is not prepared, how devastating that can be,” she said. “I would love to find a way to innovate that process, or make it more sustainable.”
This spring, Laffey was the undergraduate student winner for Pitt’s Sustainability Award. She was recognized for her research on barriers to solar energy adoption in rural Pennsylvania.
Laffey is the lead student researcher on the Rural Pennsylvania Solar Project, an initiative co-led by Pitt professors Shanti Gamper-Rabindran and Tony Kerzmann. The project looks into community perspectives on utility-scale solar development and engineering, policy and community engagement.
At Pitt, Laffey is also a member of the a capella group Sounds Like Treble and volunteers with Pitt’s Day of Giving.
Her parents are Theresa and Tim Laffey and she has one older sister, Taylor, 28, who is also a Pitt graduate and works as a pharmacist. Taylor and Cassidy are first-generation college students.
Laffey said it’s been rewarding seeing the work she’s done, and how she’s grown throughout her experiences as a college student.
“I always knew I wanted to do something with sustainability, but I never know how,” she said. “And now I know how, which is rewarding.”