MIAMI -- Laura Stieghorst was sitting in the back of a University of Miami classroom in November 2021 when she got the email that would change her life.
As her professor lectured the class on sustainable development, Stieghorst, then a senior studying environmental science and policy, learned that Elon Musk — founder of Tesla and SpaceX, new owner of Twitter and the world’s richest man — was about to give her a $100,000 grant to fund her research proposal to fight climate change.
“I just wanted to jump out of my seat,” said Stieghorst, who graduated from UM in December.
