Meet the Team

Megan Antone is a graduate of Boston University from Forth Worth, Texas with a double B.S. in Film & TV and Public Relations. She is a Sound Editor for The Sweaty Penguin, where she mixes episodes and is quickly becoming an expert in royalty-free music and slide whistle sound FX. She is also currently working at NBCUniversal in New York as an Account Services Representative for Bravo. While Megan didn’t study any environmentalism in school, her fiery devotion to Discovery’s Shark Week led her into 3 weeks of an oceanography minor, before promptly realizing she was horrible at chemistry and could not keep up; she still enjoys Shark Week every summer. In her free time, Megan enjoys puppetry (viewing and creating), comedy, and searching for sweet, delicious pie in NYC.

Mo Polyak is a recent graduate of Columbia College Chicago from Brookfield, WI with a B.A. in Comedy and Television, so if the jokes aren’t funny, blame the education system. Mo is a fresh face and voice here at The Sweaty Penguin where she assists in pitching jokes and writing silly little words in scripts to make you giggle while being informed. Mo’s past work includes a weekly satirical news program titled “The Mo Sho’”, many many classes at Chicago’s The Second City (thank you, mom), and winner of Universal’s #GoPitchYourself where she wrote and starred in a promo for Pitch Perfect 3 with Elizabeth Banks. In her spare time, Mo likes to write comedy songs, put hot sauce on everything, and buy books she’ll probably never read.

Velina is a recent graduate of College of Charleston from Columbia, South Carolina with a B. A. in Psychology and a minor in Data Science. She is a comedy writer for The Sweaty Penguin, where she writes jokes, revises scripts, and more. She founded and ran CofC’s first satire publication, The Cougar Report, which published comedic articles about culture and events regarding the college. She enjoys weekly trivia at her favorite bar, cuddling with her cats, painting gel designs, and doing all kinds of puzzles!

Emma Quarequio is a recent graduate of Boston University from Hollywood, FL with a degree in Anthropology, a Specialization in Sociocultural Anthropology and minors in Italian and Autism Spectrum Disorders. At The Sweaty Penguin, Emma is a Comedy Writer where she writes (duh) the jokes you love to hear on the show, occasionally has good ideas, and contributes to our scripts. With a passion for making all things accessible—including your environmental news—Emma is a firm believer in utilizing unconventional mediums as vessels for education and inclusion. She has interned for the Miami Marlins for two summers working to advance the Organization’s missions of Wellness, Empowerment, and Youth Baseball & Softball Initiatives. Emma is a pleasure to have in class and also ate her twin in the womb. Fun Fact: Before writing for The Sweaty Penguin, Emma was up for the titular role of Horton in Horton Hears a Who, but casting wanted to go in a different direction. Jim Carrey did a fine job.

Alia Bonanno is a rising freshman at Columbia University from Scottsdale, Arizona who is planning to study chemistry and English. She is a Research Fellow at the Sweaty Penguin, where she helps fact check and outline scripts and is helping with the Sweaty Penguin’s educational initiatives. She recently completed her tenure at her school’s newspaper, The Exonian, as Managing Editor and was the head of three environmental clubs (Sunrise Exeter, Environmental Action Committee, and Environmental Proctors). In her free time, Alia enjoys running, reading, and playing with her dogs.

Dare Fitzpatrick is a sophomore at Swarthmore College from Santa Barbara, California studying Environmental Studies and Psychology. She is a Research Fellow for The Sweaty Penguin, researching, outlining, and fact checking episodes in addition to working on educational resources to supplement the podcast. She is interested in sustainable agriculture, specifically in relation to native plants and ecosystems, and she enjoys gardening. In fact, this spring she traveled to Umbria, Italy to work on an organic and sustainable farm where she learned more about the daily commitment needed to maintain an environmentally conscious agricultural system. She also worked on her high school magazine staff for three years, writing and managing a range of articles centering topics of social justice and environmentalism (and occasionally reality TV). Aside from environmental work, Dare loves to be outdoors hiking, running, or even reading a good book.

Iliana Garner is a sophomore at Northwestern University from Chicago studying journalism and international studies. She is a journalism fellow for The Sweaty Penguin, reporting on topical environmental issues. Iliana also serves as the creative director of North by Northwestern magazine and is published in Ms. Magazine, Medill Reports and The Daily Northwestern. She also writes a column about snails for Northwestern’s nature magazine. In her free time, she loves knitting and taking care of her six pet snails.

Korin Norton is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro from Apex, NC with a degree in Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies and a minor in English Composition. She is the Social Media Manager for the Sweaty Penguin, where she oversees all social media accounts, designs and edits photos, graphics, and videos, and lives-laughs-loves on Canva and Photoshop. She is also currently a sales assistant at a large apparel company in New York City. Korin is passionate about environmentalism and ethical production in the apparel industry, and completed both her senior theses on the topic, researching both the environmental and economic impacts of fast fashion. In her free time, Korin enjoys thrift shopping (shop secondhand!!), lifting things up and putting them down at the gym, and romanticizing every second of living in NYC.

Mikaela Gonzalez is a sophomore at Swarthmore College from El Paso, TX studying Environmental Studies and Biology. She is a Research Fellow for The Sweaty Penguin, and aids in writing episode outlines, fact-checking scripts, and grant writing & fundraising. In Texas, Mikaela has spent her time advocating for sustainable policymaking through her involvement in Sunrise El Paso. During her time at Swarthmore College, Mikaela has become increasingly involved with C4 – a campus coalition that supports Chester, Pennsylvania’s fight for an end to environmental racism and inequality. In her free time, Mikaela enjoys swimming, going to the movie theater, and spending time with her cats. She is thrilled to be a part of The Sweaty Penguin team!

Saige Gipson is a recent graduate of New York University from Houston, Texas. She double majored in journalism and cinema studies with a minor in documentary. She is an editor for The Sweaty Penguin.

Sofia Mansilla is an incoming freshman at the University of Chicago from Recife, Brazil planning to study chemistry. At Sweaty Penguin, she is a Design Fellow, designing graphics for Instagram and TikTok and creating art for the 101s and Comics sections of the website. When she was a high school student at the Loomis Chaffee School, she wrote a children comic book on climate change in the world of insects. During her free time, she loves reading, playing with the microscope, and watching Gilmore Girls!

Aana Shenai is a freshman at Loyola University Chicago from Cincinnati, Ohio studying Environmental Science. She is a Research Fellow for the Sweaty Penguin, researching and fact-checking episodes and helping create educational resources. Her interest in solving climate change originated from many summers spent working and volunteering at a local farm summer camp. Passionate about sustainable agriculture, she enjoyed teaching kids about where food comes from and where it goes when we throw it away. In high school, she began working with several environmental activist organizations, often leading initiatives centered around climate education and encouraging others to take action in their communities. She believes in creating long-term change to build a more sustainable future for all young people. In her perfect world, climate education becomes a subject like math or English in schools. When not in school or working, Aana enjoys reading, cooking, thrifting, and especially traveling.