Francisco Rentería Macedo (MS/MPP ’24) says that choosing to pursue a dual degree at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) and the Ford School of Public Policy gave him invaluable experiences and connections that led him to his current career at the Qatar-based Climate Action Center of Excellence (CACE).
“There’s not one day that I don’t think about Michigan or Ann Arbor,” says Rentería.
Rentería, who specialized in Environmental Policy and Planning, says he found an interest in environmental issues after a variety of experiences, including a year spent studying abroad at the University of Melbourne, Australia, while he was pursuing his bachelor’s of engineering in energy, and an internship in the Jalisco, Mexico, Ministry of the Environment, where he eventually landed a job working as the personal assistant to the director of the Environmental Fund.
While working in the ministry, he applied for and was awarded a Fulbright grant. Rentería applied to 10 graduate programs and says the final decision came down to the University of Chicago, Columbia University and the University of Michigan.
“The thing that caught my attention about SEAS was the diversity of disciplines in just one environmental school,” says Rentería. “I was sure I wanted to study environmental policy, but I also wanted to have the opportunity to explore other things.”
He says his decision was finalized after attending Admitted Student Visit Day and having a one-on-one conversation with his assigned faculty advisor, Michael Moore, who has since passed away.
“It was so different from the other universities. It felt like a good sign that the school and the faculty took the time to have a one-on-one meeting with each admitted student.”
During his first semester at SEAS, Rentería applied for a dual degree at the Ford School.
“Both programs are the perfect match for people who want to pursue a career in environmental policy.”
He says that choosing the dual degree program had a major impact on his career path. With the dual degree, which takes three years instead of two, students get two summer internship opportunities instead of one.
“It was during my second internship that I got my job offer,” says Rentería. I wouldn’t be working where I am now if I didn’t do the dual degree program.”
Both of Rentería’s internships were with the United Nations Development Programme— the first with the Sustainable Energy Hub, and the second in carbon policy and finance with Carbon Payment for Development. During his first internship, he met the person who would be his advisor for the second internship and is now his supervisor at CACE.
At SEAS, some of Rentería’s favorite courses were in his first year when he was still exploring exactly what he wanted to do. These included Environmental Economics, Climate and Development in Less Developed Countries, and Renewable Electricity and the Grid. Rentería also took the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change seminar during his third year, which led him to be part of the U-M delegation to COP28 in Dubai.
Rentería adds that one of the courses he took at the Ford School, Budgeting and Financial Planning, was central to his internship, because students develop practical skills in financial analysis, budgeting, and policy evaluation—essential tools for navigating funding structures in international development projects.
“I am convinced that I got the offer during my second internship because of the combined training that I was getting from both SEAS and Ford,” says Rentería. “If a prospective student is interested in environmental policy, finance, international development, in general, I would recommend that they definitely look into the dual degree program.”
Rentería gained additional collaborative project experience as a Dow Sustainability Fellow, which allowed him to work with an organization in Mexico focused on water security and resiliency issues in rural communities in central Mexico through in-person community needs assessments.
“It was a good way to keep a connection to where I’m from,” says Rentería.
As an international student, another way he kept a connection with home while finding comfort in Ann Arbor was by connecting with other international students on campus.
“The community of international students in both SEAS and Ford were safe spaces to push us through this experience together,” he says.
Rentería loved to learn about everyone’s culture, especially through food. With nearly 1,700 clubs on campus, Rentería says he found a community in Ford’s Global Fordies club, a group of international students who, among other activities, share food, traditions and stories from all over the world.
“Through these gatherings, I experienced the kindness and generosity of a truly global community.”
He adds, “Beyond SEAS and Ford, there are so many opportunities. Take time to explore Ann Arbor, and take courses outside of your school. I even took an Italian course during my final semester!”