Carlos's Farewell: A Reflection on All In Energy

Carlos shares a heartfelt reflection on his journey at All In Energy, highlighting the unexpected support he received as an international student and his growth into leading impactful projects. He emphasizes the deep inspiration drawn from the company's dedication to underserved communities. Carlos, your hard work and dedication have been invaluable, and we will truly miss you.

​Reflecting on my journey to All In Energy brings a distinct memory to the forefront. At the time of interviewing for All In Energy, I had submitted over 200 applications to 200 different companies around the United States. Some of these were received well and as I sat through one interview after another, one thing became very clear to me: my status as an international student would make it very difficult for me to find employment in a field, I was passionate about upon graduating. When I interviewed for AIE, I was stunned to find out that being from outside of the United States was taken as a positive at this company. 

My ability to speak multiple languages and my nontraditional approach to problem solving were seen as assets that would increase the diversity and talent pool of the company, not as challenges that had to be overcome. I hesitantly made it clear that I was looking to strengthen my skills for a period of one to two years, and then I wanted to move on and apply lessons I had learned in less prosperous places around the world. My interviewers (who would go on to be my supervisors) said that this was an excellent goal and told me they looked forward to helping me achieve it. From the interview process, even before joining All In Energy in the fall of 2023, I already felt supported in my goals by staff that I did not know and had no previous connection to. ​

This has been one of the common through lines in my work at AIE. Support. When I developed opinions about certain programmatic aspects of the Community First Partnership, I was encouraged and supported to share this with program administrators and senior leadership. When the communities I oversaw experienced challenges and I devised plans to help them navigate these issues, I was pushed to implement these with all the support necessary. When I decided to explore professional development that was not directly applicable to my day-to-day work, I argued that it would be beneficial to my professional growth, and I was both listened to and given a fair chance to argue my point of view. Perhaps more importantly, when I told my direct supervisor that I had availability and was ready for a bigger challenge and more responsibility, I was assigned as the lead of the project to select and recruit the new CFP cohort. Not only did this experience help me further my project management skills, but I was also supported every step of the way by my coworkers, my direct supervisors and senior leadership. 

The other common through line that must be talked about is the passion for helping people that is exemplified by every single employee at this company. The desire to see tangible positive changes in the lives of populations that have been historically ignored by programs is something that was evident from the first week that I worked at All In Energy. My second week there I went to an event with Jon at a school in Revere. Jon taught me about Energy Bill Check Ups, and as I watched him lower monthly energy costs for residents on the spot when they clearly often needed it was infectious. I remember before that event was even over, I was up and out of my seat talking to residents myself to see if I could achieve a tangible positive change for even just one resident. Energy bill checks ups became my favorite part of my job. Eventually, I started teaching my partner organizations (through the Community First Partnership) to do energy bill checkups – everyone agreed that these provide crucial help for residents and since they are so easy to teach and are complementary, it did not detract from CFP at all. Jon’s passion can be seen in every single employee at All In Energy. More than that, the passion and desire to help is infectious. It radiates out of All In to other parts of the state and other organizations, and in me it will to other countries as well.

​​I feel incredibly privileged to have been able to be a part of that work, and I thank you all for making it possible. Keep up the great work, and make sure to never lose the magic that I’ve tried to describe here.