Fredericksburg, Va.—Viviana Garcia joins Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) as part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Innovator Fellowship program.

The program provides recent graduates and energy professionals the opportunity to work with critical energy organizations such as REC to advance clean-energy solutions.

Prior to joining REC, Garcia was a CivicSpark Fellow with AmeriCorps. She collaborated with community-based organizations and key stakeholders to address community micro-transit and resilience center initiatives. Micro-transit focuses on solving the first and last mile issues for people using public transit. Her proposed solution included utilizing electric vehicles to solve this challenge. Additionally, she created a resilience center toolkit and identified a site host that would be the most beneficial to the community.

During her fellowship at REC, Garcia will assist with the Cooperative’s electric-vehicle charging pilot program, energy-efficiency solutions and microgrid initiatives, which can provide reliable, clean energy during an outage.

Garcia graduated Summa Cum Laude from California State University, Long Beach, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. She minored in environmental science and policy.

In college, she knew she wanted to do research but was originally interested in wildlife and ocean conservation. She stumbled into the clean-energy industry through her previous fellowship with CivicSpark, and from there her passion grew.

“I really enjoy research and the development and coordination of programs and initiatives,” Garcia said. “Especially knowing that the things I’m working on can make a difference and better the lives of others.”

Of her role at REC, she said, “I’m excited to dig into the research and analysis and to kick off new initiatives and revamp current programs to best meet members’ needs and expectations,” she said.

REC provides electric service to 180,000 connections in parts of 22 Virginia counties. With its general office in Fredericksburg, Va., the Cooperative operates and maintains more than 18,000 miles of power lines through its service area, which ranges from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the tidal waters of the Chesapeake Bay. For more information about REC, please visit www.myrec.coop. Follow REC on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.