Through intensive classwork, research, and training with the top scholars in the field, students at the Yale School of the Environment (YSE) are prepared to tackle the most critical environmental challenges of our time. Yet as important as the work is, careers in climate are not always highly compensated, and some YSE graduates find that to pay off student loan debt, they must forgo the work where they could have the greatest impact.
Established with a gift from Anita and Josh Bekenstein ’80, the largest in YSE’s history, the Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program aims to reduce these financial barriers, enabling emerging leaders to pursue high-impact careers in the areas with the greatest need—such as the government and the nonprofit sectors.
Through scholarships, internship stipends, and post-graduate incentives, the program will support the next generation of environmental leaders working to mitigate climate change.
“Climate change is an existential threat to our beautiful planet,” Anita Bekenstein says. “It is critical that we implement solutions at speed and scale. We are proud to partner with Yale University and YSE to help increase the number of passionate young climate leaders who will help solve the climate crisis to secure a healthy planet and better future for us all.”
The program will offer $10,000 scholarships to up to thirty master’s students per class, along with funding for internships and post-graduate stipends for graduates from any of Yale’s professional schools who are pursuing careers in climate leadership.
“Yale has a rich legacy of leadership in climate, environmental, and biodiversity research, and our alumni have shaped climate policy worldwide,” says Yale President Emeritus Peter Salovey ’86 PhD. “By reducing financial barriers for students to pursue leadership roles in government agencies and NGOs, Josh and Anita will enable more Yale graduates to bring multidimensional, multisector solutions to the challenge of protecting our planet and its most vulnerable populations.”
Training Effective Leaders
Environmental crises require interdisciplinary solutions, and Yale graduate students working toward careers in climate come from every corner of campus. Each year, about fifty students pursue joint degree programs with YSE, but doing so requires an extra year of study, meaning additional expense.
The Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program will fund additional scholarships to increase the number of students pursuing joint degrees with YSE. The program will also support the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC ) at YSE, enabling YPCCC to offer an expanded curriculum to YSE students and trainings to the wider climate community.
“YSE alumni and graduates across Yale are developing cutting-edge climate science, shaping innovative policies, and protecting and managing ecosystems across the globe,” says Indy Burke, the Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. Dean of YSE. “The Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program will have a profound impact on our efforts to educate and train highly effective leaders who are capable of solving the climate crisis. We are incredibly grateful to Anita and Josh Bekenstein for the opportunity to spearhead this transformative program.”
Tomorrow’s Leaders
Meet three students from the first cohort to receive scholarships from the Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program.
Ethan Cypull ’25 MEM
Ethan Cypull, who received an internship stipend and scholarship through the Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program, first realized the devastating effects of climate change when his mother’s family in the Philippines was hit with Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. One of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded, the natural disaster destroyed the city much of his family called home.
“It opened my eyes to the dangers of natural disasters in the most personal way,” Cypull says. “Knowing that climate change was going to increase the intensity and frequency of disasters like that, I knew I wanted to do something to make a difference.”
Now, Cypull will spend this summer working with the National Association of State Energy Officia promoting renewable energy.
“The program created brand new internships in climate mitigation that are a perfect fit for students like me,” Cypull says. “This summer, I’ll be researching why some people oppose renewable energy and strategizing about how best to communicate its benefit.”
Cypull plans to lean on the expertise he gained from a course he took on strategic environmental communication with Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the YPCCC.
“Getting to take what I learned in the classroom and apply it in the real world is exactly what this program is all about,” Cypull says.
Phoebe Merrick ’25 MEM, MPH
Scholarship recipient Phoebe Merrick studied environmental science as an undergraduate, hoping to impact climate change and public health through government regulation. But when she started to pursue jobs in the field, she saw that the people doing the work she aspired to all had advanced degrees.
It led her to apply to a joint master’s degree program hosted by YSE and Yale School of Public Health, specializing in the study of climate change.
“I dreamed of working at the Environmental Protection Agency, and after my fi st year at YSE, I got an internship there,” Merrick says. “I’ll be going back again this summer, continuing my work on regulating emissions. It’s a job that I never would have been qualifie for without my training at YSE, especially my climate change policy course, which taught me everything I know about policy memo writing.”
Merrick says that beyond offering just financial relief, the scholarship validates YSE’s mission.
“There’s a sacrifice you make when pursuing a career in climate, because it’s not necessarily going to be the most highly valued or well-paying job,” Merrick says. “Scholarships definitely make it easier to choose to pursue a passion without worrying as much about loans and the burden of debt.
“Even more than that, the fact that the donors care so much about helping fight climate change is so validating. Everyone studying here knows it’s important, but having money put toward climate change specifically is really encouraging. I feel so lucky that I’m a student here while this is getting started.”
Dani Marangoni-Simonsen ’25 MEM
Bekenstein Climate Leaders Program scholarship recipient Dani Marangoni-Simonsen first fell in love with the environment growing up in Monterey, California, where she worked in outdoor education and led backpacking trips through the mountains of Big Sur.
As an undergraduate biology student, she studied abroad in Tanzania, learning about the harmful effects that conservation strategies have had on the Maasai community. “I saw firsthand how policies imposed on the Global South by the Global North can do far more harm than good when implemented without the input of local communities,” Marangoni-Simonsen says. “It really shifted the trajectory of my career goals.”
Marangoni-Simonsen was elated to receive the news of her scholarship, both for the financial relief and opportunity to join a like-minded group of climate leaders.
“I worked as a teacher before coming to YSE, so I’m no stranger to the hustle that is taking a lower salary for work you believe is important,” Marangoni-Simonsen says. “Scholarships for students who want to have an impact regardless of future income could not be more important. I want to be able to focus on just soaking up everything I can while I’m at YSE, and not having to worry as much about finance makes such a big difference.”
Marangoni-Simonsen came to YSE to acquire the skills needed for a career in federal or international climate mitigation and hopes that the Bekenstein program will help foster collaboration with a network of scholarship recipients who share her goals.
“I chose YSE because of the community,” Marangoni-Simonsen says. “This program amplifies the work already happening at Yale by bringing together a cohort of people focused on climate leadership.”