By Noah Morgenstein
On April 26th, graduate and undergraduate students presented their research to an audience of friends, family and faculty advisors as part of the 2013 Student Research Showcase. These students — who researched a multitude of environmental and sustainable development issues — come from programs across the university and have received support, guidance or funding through an Earth Institute affiliated program, including the travel grant, internship, research assistantship and Millennium Villages Project.
The showcase began with a video on the students’ work, with an introduction by Earth Institute Director Jeffrey Sachs where he discussed the ways in which students and the sustainable development field as a whole have benefited from self-directed student research. Following the video, the audience participated in an informal reception during which students addressed specific questions and discussed their research projects in greater depth. Watch the 2013 Student Research Showcase video here.
The presentations from the showcase were grouped into 6 subject areas: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Community Development, Earth Science, Health, and International Development. Students conducted work on four continents, as well as on the world’s major oceans. Ten Columbia Schools were represented including Columbia College, Barnard College, the School of Social Work, the Columbia School of Nursing, the Mailman School of Public Health, the School of International and Public Affairs, the School of Continuing Education, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the School of General Studies.
Though the poster easels have been put away until next spring, the work has not stopped. Students are undertaking diverse fieldwork this summer which will be the core of next year’s Student Research Showcase.
Noah Morgenstein is an intern for the Office of Academic and Research Programs at the Earth Institute. He attends Columbia College and will graduate in 2015 with a degree in economics and political science.
