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Zachary DaSilva-Grondin (Sargent’28) began his summer feeling exhausted. Fresh off a medical brigade in Guatemala, he entered the Enlight Fellowship unsure of what to expect. But, by the end, the community he found reshaped his perspective on his role in tackling some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
“What made everybody bond was our shared goal to make an impact in the world.”
A human physiology student at Sargent College, Zachary joined the Enlight Fellowship with a deep-rooted passion for global health equity. His previous experiences include working with displaced indigenous communities in Brazil and survivors of human trafficking in Nepal. The Enlight Fellowship gave him a new perspective on social impact and venture development. “I realized that addressing issues down the river, symbolically, is possible if we start where the river begins,” he says.
That perspective was solidified through his placement with Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD), where he joined the Housing and Homelessness Prevention Team. The placement allowed Zachary to explore systemic inequities from the ground up. He appreciated how the Enlight Fellowship combined personal freedom with local relevance. “They give us the freedom to do something aligned with our passions, but they also show us how that can be applied locally—and why that’s necessary,” he says.
As the weeks progressed, so did the bonds among his cohort. One evening during a long break in week eight or nine, the group found themselves at the BU Beach, casually talking about global issues and their individual dreams for their ventures. That moment stayed with him.
“This group is so smart, so humanitarian. These are the kind of people I want to work with in the future. These are the kind of people I want to support in their initiatives.”
For Zachary, Enlight was more than a summer experience—it was a turning point. The structure, the mentorship, and the cohort all contributed to a transformative journey. “Whenever anybody talks about wanting to make an impact, whenever anybody talks about Innovate@BU or the Enlight program, I will tell them they have to apply,” he says. “They are going to feel as fulfilled and as happy as I do now.”
He sums it up best: “Enlight is where dreams become reality. It’s where people have an idea, and those ideas become a plan, and those plans become something that can be implemented. And those possibilities become something very meaningful.”
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