Fall 2022 Projects

Click on a project title to link directly to the project description.

Project FA22h: How narratives on biodiversity and biodiversity conservation shape policy practitioners’ beliefs and priorities: Kalomo District, Zambia case study – position filled

Project FA22i: PACFTB Pittsburgh Hill Project – position filled

Project FA22j: Belonging & Placemaking within Diasporic Communities from Ethiopia in Los Angeles County – position filled

Project FA22k: Understanding geospatial synthesis in protected areas for anti-poaching – position filled

Project FA22a: Economic freedom for whom?: Crypto-tourism and coastal development in El Salvador   

Researcher: Ruchi Patel rdp20@psu.edu
Position type: literature review, data collection and processing
Application deadline: position filled

Project and position description   

On September 7th, 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, opening up its growing coastal tourist economy to a new class of investor, tourist, and business opportunity. Alongside his pet project–dubbed “Surf City”–Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele has wagered heavily on Bitcoin to help drive coastal development and put the beaches of El Salvador on the map for Bitcoiners worldwide. As of July 2022, he had invested $105.6 million of the nation’s currency reserves in a total of 2,301 Bitcoins (which are incidentally worth only half of their purchase value as the crypto market crash continues through the summer of 2022). Given the potential access it provides to many outside the traditional banking system, Bitcoin proponents including Bukele have touted the promise of Bitcoin as “economic freedom” for all – a pathway out of poverty for millions of Salvadorans.

Even before the national legalization, a social experiment with cryptocurrency was already underway in the small coastal community of El Zonte, located in the department of La Libertad. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Bitcoin has been piloted in El Zonte as a tool for everyday transactions, humanitarian aid, and social programs targeting the town’s majority poor rural population. Drawn to the prospect of a Bitcoin-friendly paradise, largely promoted by a locally led, foreign Bitcoin donor-funded group called Bitcoin Beach, Bitcoin-enthusiasts have slowly trickled into El Zonte to experience the hype for themselves. While supporting Bitcoin-funded social programs, enjoying the beautiful Zonte Beach, and patronizing local shops and restaurants (that accept Bitcoin), these mostly White crypto-tourists have also quietly bought up land in the surrounding community and often congregated in the town’s handful of exclusive hotels and resorts. In the inflated tourist economy of the coast, however, these same lands and spaces are overwhelmingly out of reach for most locals, reinforcing the common sentiment among Zonte residents that Bitcoin is “for the rich.” So, does Bitcoin really provide economic freedom for all?

This project seeks to dissect the role of Bitcoin and crypto-tourism in El Salvador, focusing on the case study of El Zonte as a harbinger of Bitcoin’s impact on local people, land, and development. The UROC student will assist with various components of the project, including interview transcriptions, a review of existing literature on Bitcoin and crypto-tourism, and data gathering through social and other media outlets.

The student will be expected to work highly independently, but the mentor and student will work together closely throughout the semester and meet (virtually) on a biweekly basis to discuss progress.

As part of the UROC program, the student will be required to attend a mid-semester check-in with the UROC program coordinators and make a short final presentation at the Geography Department’s Coffee Hour at the end of the semester.

The position also has the potential to resume for additional credits in the spring 2023 semester.

Desired qualifications

Capable of working independently
Basic knowledge or experience in cryptocurrencies
Interested in development and/or Latin American geography
Spanish-speaking (not required)

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22b: Capturing reservoir harmful algal blooms in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed using data synthesis and deep learning    

Researcher: Shuyu Chang sxc6234@psu.edu
Position type: data collection and analysis
Application deadline: application closed
Application URL: https://sites.psu.edu/uroc/undergrads-apply-for-a-project/

Project and position description

Although most rivers on earth are already dammed, we are currently in the midst of a major boom in global dam construction. The development of algal blooms in the many thousands of human-constructed water reservoirs is of particular concern not only from the perspective of aquatic habitat but also due to the frequent use of these reservoirs as both drinking water sources and recreational spaces.

The overarching goal of this research is to create a chlorophyll-a (Chla) retrieval model based on worldwide water quality monitoring data and satellite imageries. This model should be able to apply to many other ungauged waterbodies in various eutrophic conditions, to generate long-term Chla datasets in turbid waters using Landsat instruments, and to elucidate how trophic state varied over that period in different reservoirs in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. During this term, specifically, we aim to:

Collect worldwide in-situ Chla measurements from literature review, agencies, and water quality databases and then apply data quality control
Utilize Google Earth Engine Python API to automatically download Landsat imagery corresponding to measurement sites and dates
Build a simple machine-learning based model to estimate Chla, which could be utilized as a benchmark for future publication (only if time allows and UROC mentees are interested in it)

The main tools utilized in this project include Python, Google Earth Engine, and QGIS.

Desired qualifications

Prior knowledge of basic programming (not limited to Python) is preferred
Experience with GIS software (ArcGIS/QGIS) and data management
Interest in water quality research and geospatial analysis

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term.

Project FA22c: Prescribed fire effects on black legged tick abundance in Pennsylvania    

Researcher: Olivia Spencer obs5088@psu.edu
Position type: Data entry and processing
Application deadline: – position filled

Project and position description

Fire suppression over the past century has led to structural changes in forest ecosystems that may be favorable for tick habitat suitability. The absence of fire in the eastern U.S. has led to microclimate and compositional shifts towards more fire-sensitive forests in a process called mesophication. In recent decades, prescribed fire has become increasingly common to address mesophication concerns and meet various forest management objectives. Knowledge of forest response related to ticks and their pathogens has been limited, particularly in the mid-Atlantic where black-legged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) are becoming more abundant and Lyme disease rates continue to grow under climate change. This work aims to quantify black legged tick abundance and ecological drivers of tick distribution in response to prescribed fire impacts on central Pennsylvania forests. To achieve this, 24 plots were established in Centre County, Pennsylvania that were classified as recent burn, distant burn, or never burned. Ticks were collected using drag cloth sampling in June of 2022, alongside forest characteristics that are important for tick habitat suitability including relative humidity, temperature, ground vegetation density, midstory and overstory tree density, and animal host activity.

The student will work with the researcher during the semester focusing on one important variable of interest: animal host activity. The student will review and analyze passive trail camera photos from the 2022 field season to quantify animal host activity among all study sites. This data will be important in statistical modeling efforts to better understand prescribed fire effects on Pennsylvania forests.

Desired qualifications

Successful candidates will have familiarity working with Microsoft Excel and a demonstrated ability to work independently to meet deadlines. There is no previous experience required for this position. Organization skills and attention to detail will be important in the student’s success.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22d: Causes, Impacts, and Mitigation Strategies of Urban Floods in India: A Systematic Review    

Researcher: Harman Singh hxs5376@psu.edu
Position type: Qualitative data sorting and coding
Application deadline: – position filled

Project and position description

The intensity and frequency of urban floods is projected to increase across many parts of the world. In India, recent urban floods have affected population displacement, infrastructure, and means of livelihood. In my research, I am hoping to understand the current state of flood research in India, focusing on how the scholarly community has approached the causes, effects/impact, and mitigation strategies adopted by people in urban settings. This project will require sorting through the data collected for the content analysis of direct and indirect impacts of urban floods; natural and anthropogenic causes; reactive, preventative, and recovery mitigation strategies.

The expectation during this project would be

to develop a reference table for the articles collected for the systematic review
sorting through definitions of urban pluvial flooding collected (I will teach you how to use NVivo)
weekly discussions on readings and some flexibility to include undergraduate student’s research interests. Student and researcher will meet weekly throughout the semester to discuss progress on the project.

Desired qualifications

Successful completion of a physical or human-environment geography course (e.g., GEOG 210 or 230) and interest in natural hazards, climate change, and research methods.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term.

Project FA22e: Poverty in the Suburbs: A Literature Review    

Researcher: Billy Southern bms6724@psu.edu
Position type: data collection, literature review
Application deadline: – position filled

Project and position description

This project will examine poverty and conditions of inequality in US cities, with a particular focus on the suburban landscape. While poverty has continued to grow across urban and rural spaces, it has increased most strongly in the suburban realm with the number of poor individuals living in suburbia now outnumbering those residing in urban and rural spaces. Suburban poverty has increased across all forms of metropolis, from Rustbelt spaces such as Pittsburgh, sunbelt cities like Phoenix, to more regional spaces such as Portland. Through this project, we will develop a literature review that takes a closer look at suburban poverty to explore how socioeconomic conditions have changed across the suburban setting in recent years. We will operate with a case study-led approach and identify a US city, as chosen by the student, and develop a detailed focus on the socioeconomic conditions across this space. The project will have three aims:

To identify literature that looks at poverty and conditions of inequality of suburban environments across the US
To examine the influencing factors that have been essential in shaping socioeconomic conditions of residents in modern suburbia
To think about our case study and consider the unique processes of this city

The student and researcher will work collaboratively on the project to develop a catalogue of literature related to the topic by using relevant software. Student and researcher will meet weekly to discuss the ongoing progress of the project.

Desired qualifications

Preference is given to students who have taken a previous human geography course, and students who are interested in themes around human-environment are also encouraged to apply.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22f: Suburban School Segregation and Attendance Zone Boundaries    

Researcher: Ruth Buck rkb5550@psu.edu
Position type: Geospatial data processing and analysis
Application deadline: position filled

Project and position description

Across the United States, the vast majority of children are assigned to schools based on the attendance zone boundary (AZB) they live in. While AZBs are widely recognized as playing a key role in determining access to educational resources and opportunities, there is no national database of these boundaries and often the information is maintained by individual school districts. The Longitudinal School Attendance Boundary Study (LSABS) at Penn State has collected raw boundary data from hundreds of school districts across the country and is currently working to digitize these data.

This project contributes to the work of LSABS by preparing data for Baltimore County, MD for analysis and eventual release on the LSABS website. The student will use GIS software of their choice (e.g., ArcGIS Pro or QGIS) to digitize Baltimore County’s AZBs from 1995-2020. Once the boundaries are digitized there will be opportunities to work with data from the US Census and National Center for Education Statistics to analyze how boundary changes have impacted school and residential segregation over time. While this research will ideally support LSABS and contribute to our understandings of how AZBs influence schools and neighborhoods, there is flexibility in the direction the project will take based on the interests and skillset of the student.

Desired qualifications

Previous GIS experience and a background in human geography are strongly preferred

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22g: Impacts of Protected Areas on Indigenous Diets in Southeast Asia    

Researcher: Lilly Zeitler lmz5288@psu.edu
Position type: Dataset development (spreadsheet or shapefile)
Application deadline: position filled

Project and position description

The role of protected areas for people’s wellbeing remains hotly contested. Adverse social impacts of protected areas (PAs) include the eviction and exclusion of thousands of people from traditional lands and livelihoods (West et al., 2006). Diets, meanwhile, are central to human wellbeing; yet the association between protected areas and diet quality is little understood. Protected areas often intersect with traditionally Indigenous lands (Garnett et al., 2018), so Indigenous diets may be at greater risk from the establishment of protected areas than other ethnic groups. This project aims to expand our knowledge on the relationships between protected areas and local diets, particularly for Indigenous populations, within the context of Southeast Asia.

Given that Indigeneity remains difficult to define, (spatial) data on Indigenous populations is lacking. The UROC student will contribute to filling this data gap by screening a list of ethnic groups from a pre-existing dataset to record whether the ethnic group meets our criteria for ‘Indigenous’ (a screening protocol will be provided). The final deliverable will be a dataset of Indigenous ethnic groups for at least 2 Southeast Asian countries (Myanmar and Cambodia). The protocol and final dataset will be published online with free access for other researchers. The UROC student will be acknowledged in our published dataset and publication. The UROC student will gain useful skills in building datasets ‘from scratch,’ as well as transferable skills in screening methods and data management.

Desired qualifications

No prior experience required. UROC candidates should demonstrate the ability to work independently, as well as with their graduate mentor. Time management skills and the ability to concentrate on repetitive tasks will be needed to complete deliverables by the deadline. Prior GIS experience preferred but not required.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22h: How narratives on biodiversity and biodiversity conservation shape policy practitioners’ beliefs and priorities: Kalomo District, Zambia case study    

Researcher: Tiza Mfuni tim5357@psu.edu
Position type: Qualitative data coding and analysis
Application deadline: open until filled
Application URL: https://sites.psu.edu/uroc/undergrads-apply-for-a-project/

Project and position description

Conservation efforts in Africa, are complicated by competing needs, interests, and demands of different actors operating across multiple scales (Asiyanbi, 2016; Neumann, 1998; Reed et al., 2020). These efforts often take place in multi-functional landscapes in which biodiversity, ecosystem services, and livelihood options for agriculture-forest frontier communities must be maintained or improved (Nyantakyi-Frimpong & Bezner Kerr, 2017). The international interest for biodiversity conservation that these areas have attracted often act with and through policymakers and practitioners (PMPs).

Much of the narrative used by conservation PMPs in Zambia favors biodiversity conservation over the needs of local communities, often placing the responsibility for biodiversity loss on local people, and poorly acknowledging larger structural drivers such as crop export, land grabbing, and global climate change (Hall et al., 2017; Moseley et al., 2015; Neumann, 2017). Additionally, the narratives carry in them neo-colonial tendencies and conservation ideas from the Global North that are unconsciously ‘uptaken’ by African PMPs. Narratives about biodiversity and conservation impact policymaking priorities, practice, and conservation outcomes, but the manner and extent of this impact is misunderstood (Lejano et al., 2013; Reed et al., 2020). This raises the primary research question; How do conservation narratives and discourses in documents from international and national conservation institutions talk about biodiversity and biodiversity conservation?

This research will examine the relationship between exposure to different conservation narratives and discourse and policymakers’ beliefs and priorities about conservation outcomes. Specifically, the research will:

identify and trace specific narratives and their characteristics in documents from international and (sub)national conservation institutions, and
trace narratives in PMPs’ descriptions/perspectives of biodiversity and biodiversity conservation in Zambia

The UROC student will contribute towards specific objective (a). The student will identify, code, extract and categorize narratives from documents authored by international and Zambian (sub)national conservation institutions, that will be provided by the graduate student.

In addition to course credit, the selected candidate will gain exposure to global and African biodiversity conservation issues as well as hands-on experience with a critical research technique.

Deliverables include: a table of narratives with the following columns

copied and pasted text from document
code
category
source document
year
scale (global, regional, national, subnational)
other documents with similar text

Desired qualifications

Interest in biodiversity, biodiversity conservation, social and environmental justice, rural communities and livelihoods
Interest in qualitative research methods
Experience with NVivo or other qualitative data analysis computer software will be an added advantage

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term

Project FA22i: PACFTB Pittsburgh Hill Project   

Researcher: Erica King elk91@psu.edu
Position type:      lesson design & planning using ESRI StoryMaps & primary sources
Application deadline: position filled

Project and position description   

The Pennsylvania Center for the Book (PACFTB) was established in 2000 as an affiliate of the Library of Congress with its mission to study, honor, celebrate, and promote books, reading, libraries, and literacy to the citizens and residents of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. One of PACFTB’s largest ongoing initiatives is the Literary and Cultural Heritage Map of Pennsylvania. The map links over 1,100 biographical pieces and 300 feature articles composed by Penn State students and local writers to highlight the diverse and robust cultural history for the state.

The PACFTB is currently expanding the map project to engage directly with the PA Curriculum and highlight previously underrepresented populations.

This position will require students to (1) conduct research related to The Pittsburgh Courier and its local and national influence from 1920-1957, (2) assist in the design and development of ESRI Story Maps, (3) work with the PACFTB Curriculum Specialist to create educational learning materials.

The candidate will meet each week with the PACFTB Curriculum Specialist. Work may be conducted remotely; in addition, a workspace within Paterno Library will be provided

Desired qualifications   

Ideally, applicants should have at least 1 semester of experience with historical and/or human geography and an interest in ArcGIS analysis. Courses in these subjects are a plus.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term.

Project FA22j: Belonging & Placemaking within Diasporic Communities from Ethiopia in Los Angeles County   

Researcher: Eden Mekonen evm5746@psu.edu
Position type:     qualitative data analysis
Application deadline: position filled

Project and position description   

This project will explore placemaking practices, identity, and the boundaries of kinship within African diasporic groups. Rather than focusing on the psychological dimensions of belonging and exclusion, this project takes a place-based approach to examining the social significance of place and its impact on communal identity formation among Los Angeles County groups that immigrated from Ethiopia. This project complicates understandings of identity within Geography to better consider the diversity of experiences within racial and/or ethnic categories and its impacts an individual’s access to resources, spaces, and social networks.

Desired qualifications   

Candidates for this project should expect to learn qualitative data techniques, NVivo software applications, and data analysis. This project is well-suited for students interested in one or more of the following areas: Black Geographies, Migration/Diaspora Studies, African Geographies, Urban Geographies, Ethnic Placemaking, Racialization, Geographies of Race and Ethnicity, and/or Intragroup Marginalization. The typical tasks will involve listening to and transcribing interviews, and students will develop their own research questions and analysis in relationship to this data.

This project would benefit students interested in receiving more training in qualitative research and methods, and especially students pursuing JEDIS certificate. No prior experience is needed, but fluency in oral and written English will be essential for transcription tasks.

This project will require 45-135 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-3 credits for the fall term.

Project FA22k: Understanding geospatial synthesis in protected areas for anti-poaching

Researcher: Wendy L Zeller Zigaitis wlz101@psu.edu
Position type: Qualitative data coding
Application deadline: application closed

Project and position description

Wildlife poaching continues to threaten endangered species and poses a threat to human health due to the spread of zoonotic diseases. A key challenge for mitigating poaching within protected areas is to understand the disparate geospatial data that are collected at each location, and to characterize the ability to synthesize those data to form a holistic picture of the movement patterns of humans and animals. Literature reviewed from the past fifteen years on wildlife poaching reveals a gap in our knowledge on how protected area practitioners make sense of the varied geospatial data that are collected within protected areas. This project will involve the coding of intrinsic qualitative survey data to develop themes from open ended survey questions, as well as the transcription of in person interview notes. Undergraduate student will work with researcher on developing mutually agreed upon themes for coded information. It is expected that at least biweekly zoom meetings will be held to discuss themes and codes in the qualitative data.

Key due date: 8 October for first part. Potential for additional work second part of the fall semester.

Desired qualifications   

Student must be highly-detail oriented and prefer student with prior qualitative data coding experience. Experience in statistical analysis is preferred but not required. Due to the sensitive nature of this topic, students will be provided access to a secure online cloud server where data will be stored.

This project will require 45-90 hours of work over the course of the semester, and the successful applicant may earn 1-2 credits for the fall term.