Carrying a giant, black folded foam pad on her back, Alexandra Toth hikes a path surrounded by towering southern red oak trees in a Tennessee forest. She is on her way to boulder at one of her favorite rock-climbing spots.
“I did not like bouldering when I first started climbing,” Alexandra admits. “It was so hard. I couldn’t figure out how to do it. I didn’t feel strong enough. So I tried other types of climbing, and over time, especially as I started to climb outside, I found that bouldering was actually my favorite.”
Unlike traditional rock climbing, bouldering doesn’t use a safety rope. It’s highly dependent on the balance, grip and technique of the climber to complete a sequence of moves called a “problem.” Rather than moving toward neck-craning heights, Alexandra must find her way through a shorter climb with condensed, complex formations. She must think creatively and rely on her flexibility to figure out the movements that work best towards finding the solution, the giant, black folded foam pad there to catch her if she can’t.
Climbers may have to put a heel well above their head, hang upside down, and carefully but forcefully swing a leg or arm from one spot to the next. It’s why Alexandra describes boulders as hard puzzles.
“As someone who has always loved a puzzle to solve and finding different solutions, it’s what attracted me to bouldering — a way to exercise my mind and my body, but also find these unique ways to problem-solve.”
Alexandra’s passion for rock climbing was born from an even deeper passion for the environment that began when she attended a unique elementary and middle school located down the river from a national park. Much of the curriculum focused on environmental education. Field trips and activities included spending a weekend backpacking through a forest, learning how to kayak and flip the kayak back over if you tipped, climbing rocks and alpine towers, and mastering how to use a compass to navigate your way through the woods.
After taking an environmental science course in high school, Alexandra knew she wanted to apply those learnings into her career. So she did just that.
As an Environmental and Product Data Manager at Cummins Inc., Alexandra focuses on technology investment portfolio analysis and product greenhouse gas emissions accounting, strategic planning and reporting. Her goal is to help Cummins make investment decisions as technology evolves through the energy transition.
“Most of Cummins’ greenhouse gas footprint is from product emissions,” Alexandra explains. “So, how do we make the products more efficient, use low-carbon fuels, make renewable fuels, electrify, or use alternative powertrain pathways to reduce emissions for the world?”
Those are exactly the questions Alexandra hopes to answer. For the past three and a half years, she’s been studying market trends, tracking engineering research and development expenses, and analyzing the emissions of application technologies to ensure the company creates a product portfolio that meets the needs of its customers now while also supporting a more sustainable future.
“I think that’s one of the foundational aspects of Cummins: We have so many products that apply to different industries, and we’re all going to move at different rates and speeds through this energy transition,” Alexandra shares. “We’re making investments in all these different technologies so that we have foundational building blocks that will set us up when the market turns or when an industry shifts.”
Ultimately, Alexandra’s eagerness to solve problems, coupled with her deep appreciation for the environment combined seamlessly with her position at Cummins Inc. Her passion for the outdoors has continued to follow her throughout her life, from adolescence to adulthood, weaving between her career and personal adventures.
“Reflecting on younger me, I’m very proud of the work I do now,” Alexandra says. Her role at Cummins is one way she can help protect the places where she finds serenity and peace.
Navigating the energy transition is not an easy task, but Alexandra isn’t one to shy away from a challenge. Every time she falls while bouldering, she’s quick to dust herself off, chalk her hands and try a different path. It’s the same mindset she applies to her work.
“Rock climbing can feel like 99% failure, but you have to remember it’s okay to fail,” she explains. “It’s okay to be wrong. The most important part is you learning from it and changing your approach. The beta [your solution to a rock climb] may be different depending on how strong you’re feeling that day, how much you prepared or weather conditions, and I think this actually parallels really well with the energy transition — how we all are going to have to adapt and evolve.”
Like Cummins, Alexandra believes there is no single solution for everyone, nor are all obstacles ahead predictable and controllable. However, as Alexandra believes, “those who find success are the ones who learned along the way to find the best approach at the moment.”
Learn more about Cummins’ Destination Zero strategy.