At Carolina, Shea is the adviser to the student-led Renewable Energy Special Projects Committee (RESPC) that allocates the green energy fee. Shea chaired the development of UNC’s Strategic Sustainability Plan that led to the Three Zeros Initiative of carbon neutrality, water neutrality and zero waste. Shea serves on multiple campus committees and regularly leads capstones and internship projects. The formal link between finance and operations initiatives and academic pursuits occurred in 2021 when Shea joined the new Sustainable Carolina program housed in the Institute for the Environment. Shea has published widely on sustainability while at UNC and previously as the research and outreach manager at the International Institute for Sustainable Development and as a senior researcher at the Worldwatch Institute. Shea is grateful for the nine years she spent working outside the United States in Canada, Germany and the Netherlands.