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A childhood fascination with cars fueled University of Maryland (UMD) alumnus Justin Di Palo’s (‘11, M.S. ‘12) interest in engineering. As a professional engineer, however, he’s turned his focus to a broader concern: developing technologies that can support sustainable living and help save the planet.
Di Palo traces this shift of focus back to a life-changing moment during his college days. He describes encountering a crowd of peaceful protesters who were sharing information about the environmental costs and inhumane aspects of factory farming and animal processing. “It really opened my eyes to the impact we have on the environment,” he said.
Meanwhile, as he progressed in his studies, Di Palo felt his perspective broaden. “It became obvious towards the end of the curriculum that mechanical engineering is not only the practical application of machines but also the study of energy and the science of the natural world,” he said. “This deepened my appreciation for nature, providing both a pragmatic and spiritual lens to see the world, and further solidified my passion for sustainability.”
Today, Di Palo has built a career as a decarbonization expert and currently serves as associate partner and national sustainability integration lead for the Syska Hennessey Group. A global mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design consultation firm, it specializes in large commercial projects, including in areas such as industry, commerce, healthcare, and aviation.
“My goal as lead for our high-performance solutions team, and also personally, is to make sure that all projects we work on have opportunities for critical thinking to improve performance, with respect to carbon, energy, water, and the human experience,” he said.
To achieve these objectives, Di Palo and his team employ a suite of analysis and energy modeling tools, comparing scenarios and forecasting the results of different measures that a client might take. The entire lifecycle of a project—from day one to end-of-life, along with everything in between—is modeled, showing the total impact in terms of carbon emissions.
“We look at where the carbon comes in, where it goes out, and what we can do to help the grid, reduce the carbon footprint, and enhance the well-being of the building occupants,” he said.
It’s an impactful choice of career, and Di Palo says UMD prepared him for it in a number of ways. As a student in the five-year bachelor’s-to-master’s program, he had the opportunity to hone in on renewable energy research in his final year, working with professors David Bigio and Michael Ohadi in their respective labs. Furthermore, he became involved with the UMD chapter of ASHRAE, serving as chapter president for a semester. That helped put him on a track that ultimately blossomed into a career.
“In engineering school, you’re drinking from a firehose left and right,” he said. “You have to navigate through that and try to come out on the positive end, retaining information but also doing well in terms of grades. It’s not easy, but it prepares us for success in our professional careers. It trained me to learn how to learn.”
“My ability to learn new material, to pick up software and master it quickly, to absorb and apply information—all of this I attribute to my studies at UMD,” he said.
November 4, 2024
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