Summer 2025 Intern Spotlight

Conner Polkky

Engineering Intern

What are you hoping to learn from an internship with GSI, and what have you learned so far?

Coming into this internship, I wanted to understand how a professional office environment works, especially across different departments. I wasn’t as focused on the industry itself at first, but I was excited to put myself out there and see how the corporate world functions. Since starting at GSI, I’ve learned a lot about solar energy, from production and manufacturing to the financial aspects of solar photovoltaic power plants. On a personal level, this experience, being in a whole new country, has really pushed me out of my comfort zone, made me more adaptable, and helped me become more confident when talking to new people.

How does this internship align with your future career goals?

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how this internship fits with my future. I’ve always enjoyed electrical engineering because there’s so much I don’t know, and I love learning more. Renewable energy is a great field to be in because it’s always evolving and will always be relevant. I also have a strong interest in the space industry, and I’ve been thinking about how solar energy could play a role in space, like powering spacecraft or satellites. The idea of combining solar and space is super exciting to me.

Tell us one interesting fact about yourself that your colleagues might not know.

I was actually born on a farm. Not in a barn, but just a couple hundred feet away in a farmhouse. A family friend who worked as a traveling nurse helped with the delivery, which makes for a pretty unique birth story.

 

Rapid Fire Favorites

  • Movie: Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
  • Tv Show: The Office (US)
  • Book: “Eat Like a Fish” by Bren Smith
  • Musician/Band: Arctic Monkeys
  • Restaurant (City): Sky Sushi in Houghton, MI
  • Food: Chicken Alfredo
  • Sports Team: Green Bay Packers
  • City: Tokyo, Japan

Emily Theodosopoulos

 Strategic Capital and Asset Management Intern

What are you hoping to learn from an internship with GSI, and what have you learned so far?

I came into this internship hoping to better understand how businesses work, since that wasn’t something I’d been exposed to before. So far, I’ve learned a a great deal. I’ve been able to sit in on meetings and get an inside look at how the company operates across different departments. It’s been really cool to see how teams like asset management, strategic finance, and development all work together. I especially enjoyed learning about asset management; it’s something I’d love to keep exploring.

How does this internship align with your future career goals?

I’ve always known that I wanted to go into a career related to finance, so this internship has been the perfect opportunity for me. I’ve been working closely with the strategic finance and asset management teams and gaining hands-on experience every day. Since I’m the only intern on the team, I’ve had a chance to really immerse myself in the work. I’ve learned way more than I expected and I’m confident this is setting me up for success in whatever I do next, ideally something similar to what I’m doing now.

Tell us one interesting fact about yourself that your colleagues might not know.

I have an Australian Labradoodle named Charlie who we got during COVID. He’s five years old now and absolutely adorable. Definitely one of the best parts of my life.

 

Rapid Fire Favorites

  • Movie: The Parent Trap 
  • TV Show: Gilmore Girls (I’ve seen it at least 20 times!)
  • Book: “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott
  • Musician/Band: Taylor Swift
  • Restaurant (City): Momoya in New York City (Chelsea)
  • Food: Pizza
  • Sports Team: New York Yankees
  • City: New York City (I live and go to school here, so I’m a little biased)

 

Jared VandenBerg

Corporate Affairs Intern

What are you hoping to learn from an internship with GSI, and what have you learned so far?

In my internship with GSI, my main goal is to determine what I want to do as a career. As a university student, I am still quite unfamiliar with how ‘real world’ jobs function and their roles and responsibilities. So far in my position, I’ve learned a lot about how the corporate world works and the place I may have in it. I have also developed a lot of simple skills I may use in the future, everything from advanced photoshop techniques to printing address labels.

How does this internship align with your future career goals?

As an economics student, it may not be immediately clear how my position relates to my career goals. However, I believe there are many ways in which it aligns. First, I have always had an interest in studying environmental economics specifically, so having experience working in this sector is extremely important. I’m also very interested in graphic design, and based on my work here, I feel that I would really enjoy a marketing role in the future.

Tell us one interesting fact about yourself that your colleagues might not know.

One thing I think is interesting is that my very first memory was of a Paul McCartney concert. Specifically, I can remember singing the outro section of Hey Jude on the plains of Abraham in 2008. It took me until recently to learn that that memory was from a few weeks before I turned 3 years old.

 

Rapid Fire Favorites

  • Movie: The Shawshank Redemption
  • Tv Show: Malcolm in the Middle
  • Book: Freakonomics Steven D. Levitt
  • Musician/Band: The Beatles
  • Restaurant (City): Giordano’s Pizza (Chicago)
  • Food: Shawarma
  • Sports Team: The Green Bay Packers
  • City: Vienna, Austria

 

Tala Anouti

Development Intern

What are you hoping to learn from an internship with GSI, and what have you learned so far?

Because my major is in electrical engineering and I have a minor in sustainability, this internship has been a whole new experience for me, and one that aligns well with both fields of study. I’ve learned a lot about renewable energy, from how bill statuses work to how laws vary by location. I didn’t know much about this field going in, so I’ve had to look up and research a lot along the way, and I’ve found myself genuinely excited to keep learning. There are always new updates, new legislation, and something fresh to dive into each day. I’m open to learning everything I can. I would also like to explore different divisions within GSI to better understand how projects are built from the ground up, starting with early-stage research and policy analysis and continuing through implementation and impact assessment, because that full project lifecycle ties directly into both my sustainability background and my engineering mindset.

How does this internship align with your future career goals?

This internship directly supports my goal of building a career in clean energy, particularly in areas like storage and hybrid project development. It helped me see how all the pieces of the energy ecosystem, policy, markets, utilities, and technology interconnect to move projects from concept to reality. Understanding this big picture is essential to the kind of work I want to pursue. Being named to the Dean’s List seven times reflects my commitment to learning and excellence, and I’m excited to apply that same drive to the evolving world of clean energy, where there’s always something new to explore. I can honestly see myself staying in this field long-term as I am happy here.

Tell us one interesting fact about yourself that your colleagues might not know.

I love playing chess. Not competitively, just for fun. I got into it during the pandemic, and now I use it as a way to unwind or challenge myself during breaks. I spend a lot of time on Chess.com doing puzzles and quick 5-minute games.

 

Rapid Fire Favorites

  • Movie: Now You See Me (the first one is the best!)
  • TV Show: Bob’s Burgers
  • Book: “Pet Sematary” by Stephen King
  • Musician/Band: Kendrick Lamar
  • Restaurant (City): Maggiano’s in Richmond, VA
  • Food: Pizza
  • Sports Team: FC Barcelona (been a fan since I was five!)
  • City: Tokyo, Japan