Amit Singh, CEO of NearStar Fusion, recently took the time to walk me through the world of inertial fusion versus magnetic fusion. At one point I told him that the last person I’d told about wanting to work in fusion had laughed at me. He didn’t laugh. Instead, he talked about working for a purpose, not a salary. That’s stuck with me since, and it’s got me thinking back on how I actually landed here in the first place.
Two semesters before graduating, I realized I needed more graduate-level courses to hit the requirements for the +1 program. So when I was scrolling through options and found Dr. Chris Wedding’s Fuqua course on ESG investing, I actually got pretty excited.
I had considered writing my honors thesis on ESG investing. I’d been part of Duke Impact Investing. I’d dabbled in the finance world during my summer abroad in London. But I was always confident I’d end up pursuing a PhD in economics. I didn’t have corporate experience, I didn’t know the finance lingo, and I certainly lacked Excel expertise. I figured I wouldn’t exactly fit right in — but the class covered a topic I was genuinely interested in, so I signed up.
Exactly one semester later, I was applying to Fuqua’s Master in Business, Climate, and Sustainability program’s inaugural class. I’d chosen a 180-degree pivot away from the PhD track and onto a new path that would get a lot more people laughing at me: fusion.
Dr. Wedding’s class wasn’t just about fusion. It covered everything from geothermal energy to insuring coconuts in Indonesia. But it did reinstate an idea in my mind: economics isn’t just abstract models and difficult proofs. It can also be about improving the world around you.
Then a guest speaker mentioned that the next big thing would be fusion. I went home, did my research, and was hooked. The physics still gets me: plasma sustains itself with its own heat, and the breeding blanket regenerates fuel to keep the whole process going. And at the end of it: potentially limitless clean energy.
My master’s program orientation is in three days. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to learn everything I can about the fusion industry, meeting people I never would have dreamed would take the time to speak with me. Every conversation leaves me more convinced this is where I want to be.
Yes, fusion is probably not happening tomorrow. Yes, I made this pivot with one semester left in school. Yes, I don’t have the corporate experience, and I don’t get every acronym the finance world throws at me. But I am passionate, and I hope to show that through these short posts and the projects and people I share here.