Grantee

Hanna is a creative researcher from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She recently graduated from Brown University with a concentration in Urban Studies, a field that allowed her to combine interests in architectural history, anthropology, landscape architecture, and planning. Prior to Brown, Hanna studied fine arts at CAPA high school in Pittsburgh and has since been drawn to the global world of craft and cultural history. Hanna’s research project in Nepal seeks to understand human relationships with nature through the preservation of Lokta paper making traditions. She will work primarily in the Kathmandu, Solukhumbu and Sankhuwasabha districts, conducting ethnographic research with Lokta farmers and paper makers, learning about urban and rural traditions of paper making and the future of this tradition. Hanna is excited to immerse herself in the craft community in Nepal and to explore the country through nature and craft.

“Perrin graduated in 2022 with a Master’s in Global Environmental Public Health from George Washington University. She is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Mongolia, ‘16-18) and former Park Ranger (‘18-’20). For the last 2 years, she has worked with academic institutions and federal agencies to research air quality inequities using geographic information systems, ground monitoring systems, and qualitative tools. Perrin last lived in Nepal in 2015 while teaching earth science when the earthquakes struck. Today, her research capitalizes on her extensive field experience, mapping, and community engagement background to synthesize local knowledge with scientific analysis.

The study she will conduct in Nepal under technical supervision of The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) will pair quantitative measurements of particulate matter 2.5 using low-cost portable air monitors with qualitative observations about the kinds of exposures that participants come in contact with during their everyday routines. The aim of this research is to compare common types of air pollution exposures in rural, peri-urban, and urban areas outside of the Kathmandu Valley and to create educational materials, which may be used to mitigate health risks due to PM2.5. This project has obtained approval from the Nepal Health Research Council and George Washington University Institutional Review Board.”

Jenna is an alumna of the School for International Training’s Nepal study abroad program in Development, Gender, and Social Change in the Himalaya as well as Colorado State University, where she received a bachelor’s in Social Work and minor in International Development. Working alongside the Law and Policy Forum for Social Justice, her Fulbright research in Nepal is focused on Nepali Third Country Nationals’ experiences on U.S. military bases. Third Country Nationals (TCNs) are migrant workers who are employed on U.S. military bases to assist American war efforts such as military base security, cooking food for troops, building new structures for bases, and much more. She hopes to build public awareness of how many Nepalis are hired as TCNs and increase understanding of what their experiences are like.

Nicole is a recent graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service where she studied international politics with a focus on sustainability in South Asia. Prior to her Fulbright, she worked to assist multinational companies in understanding how upcoming sustainability policies will impact their business models as an analyst at a D.C.-based government relations consulting firm, The Asia Group. In addition to her policy background, Nicole is passionate about innovative green energy technology and water conservation in South Asia, a region heavily affected by climate change. Therefore, she is pursuing research focused on climate migration for her Fulbright in Nepal as she works hand-in-hand with the Integrated Center for International Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

Rachael Lau is a third-year Ph.D. candidate in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a focus on geophysical disaster mitigation. She is a 2022 Fulbright Scholar and Rhodes Graduate Fellow in Interdisciplinary Research and a co-founder of the National Academy of Engineering’s Call to Action on the COVID-19 Crisis. In addition to her research, Rachael co-founded and co-manages a research cohort on earthquake risk and resiliency between Duke and the Institute of Engineering in Kathmandu, Nepal. Rachael is a May 2020 undergraduate from Duke who majored in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a focus on water resources engineering and a Certificate in Global Development Engineering. Rachael will be working with the Institute of Engineering and the National Society for Earthquake Technology, Nepal. Her interests include disaster response, human rights, and running.