iFellows News
March 15, 2016
Humans of USU: Student dives into water-shortage research
iUTAH 2015 iFellow Viviane Baji was featured in an conversational article in The Utah Statesman. Here’s an excerpt:
“I guess water is kind of my thing,” said Viviane Baji, a senior student researcher at Utah State University. This summer, Baji collected research as an iFellow for the innovative Urban Transitions and Aridregion Hydro-sustainability (iUTAH) program. iUTAH is a five-year interdisciplinary research program studying Utah’s water’s future sustainability.
Baji presented her iFellow data analysis at the State Capitol in January and will be presenting again at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research in Asheville, North Carolina. A Logan native, Baji is majoring in Environmental and Natural Resources Economics. She also serves as the Environment and Natural Resource club president this year. The Statesman chatted with Baji about her research conclusions and her experiences as a student researcher.
March 1, 2016
2015 iFellow Matt Barnett featured on the USU RGS website
Last year’s iUTAH iFellows have been busy presenting their water-related research findings these past few weeks at various state venues. USU’s Matthew Barnett of Blanding, Utah was featured on the Utah State University Office of Research and Graduate Studies website for his presentation of research at Utah’s Capitol. Here’s an excerpt from that article:
USU’s Matthew Barnett of Blanding, Utah presented his research on links between outdoor recreation and environmental concerns among Utahns. The Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology student found that those engaged in water recreation — fishing, boating, etc… — viewed actions to conserve Utah water more positively than those who do not.
With the state’s population expected to double in the next fifty years, Barnett said his research will be instrumental in the planning and preparation for Utah’s present and future water challenges, giving the state “a better shot at meeting our goals for sustainability.”
“By understanding the social processes that drive people’s perceptions about water, it contributes to a body of knowledge and a well-informed public, leading to well-directed education initiatives,” he said.
February 24, 2016
Undergrads Present Water-Related iUTAH Research at UCUR
Students from all over the state participated in the annual Utah Conference on Undergraduate Research (UCUR), held February 19, 2016 on the University of Utah campus. Six students associated with iUTAH EPSCoR presented research at this year’s conference. Viviane Baji, Matthew Barnett, and Jordan Risley, all from Utah State University, examined different aspects of the Utah Water Survey/iPad Project conducted last summer. Student participants include:
- Christopher Mansfield, Westminster College, working with RCG awardees, oral:
Environmental Influences of Methylmercury Photo-Degradation Rates at the Great Salt Lake - Hannah Peterson, UVU, working with RCG awardees, poster:
Temporal and Spatial Variations of Trace Metal Loading to Utah Lake - Jordan Risley, USU, iFellow, poster:
The Impact of Farm Ties on Concern About Climate Change - Matthew Barnett, USU, iFellow, poster:
Does Water-Based Outdoor Recreation have an Impact on the Environmental Concerns and Perceptions of Utahns? - Viviane Baji, USU, iFellow, poster:
Impact of Age on Water Shortage Concern - Zack Oldroyd, USU, iFellow, oral:
Utah Water Voices
Now in its 10th year, UCUR gives students the chance to formally present visual and/or oral presentations of their work in a scholarly setting to students, faculty, field specialists, and community members. It also offers an informal networking opportunity. State colleges and universities take turns hosting UCUR. Next year’s Conference will be held at Utah Valley University.
Press: U of U Press Release | Daily Utah Chronicle | Deseret News | Fox 13 News
January 28, 2016
Students Showcase Research at Legislature
Undergraduate students from the University of Utah and Utah State University (USU) displayed their research for Utah lawmakers in the rotunda of the state Capitol in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. Among the participants were USU and iUTAH 2015 iFellows Viviane Baji and Matthew Barnett. Both Matt and Viviane worked with faculty mentor Dr. Doug Jackson-Smith of Utah State University.
“We were excited to be at the state Capitol, “said Baji. “It was a blast to present our iUTAH research and have legislators come by to talk with us about the importance of our work.”
These students will get the chance to present their work again next month at the annual Utah Conference on Undergraduate Research (UCUR) in Salt Lake City, along with USU iFellow Jordan Risley. In addition to attending these statewide conferences, Viviane Baji was accepted to the National Undergrad Research Conference, which will be held in Asheville, North Carolina, later this spring.
Photo credit: USU Office of Research and Graduate Studies
August 14, 2015
Utahns Voice their Ideas about Water
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of water?
Scientists tend to think of issues as problems – water scarcity, declining water quality, and so on. But how do community members in Utah think about water? The Utah Water Voices Project, led by Dr. Courtney Flint with iFellows Zack Oldroyd and Andre Valle along with other USU students,* set out to open the water conversation with members of the public using social science research techniques.
The team selected six public spaces or parks along the Logan River to capture the iUTAH theme of a mountain to urban or valley gradient, and set out to conduct public intercept interviews at different times of day throughout the summer. Interview questions asked people about the values or benefits of water, as well as perceived threats or problems related to water in and beyond neighborhoods and communities. Flint’s students brought their interests in technology, setting up an interactive form on iPad tablets to guide paperless interviews and allow for quick collection of demographic data to help the survey team assess how well the their interviewees reflected the larger community. Interviews were audio recorded and lasted anywhere from 2 to 25 minutes (with an average of 7 minutes).
Interviewees spoke openly on a range of issues – from their thoughts on how important water is for their health and recreation to concerns about flooding, safety, pollution, and drought. Questions asked about interactions with different Utah water bodies and whether respondents would like to see their environmental condition changed – information that will be useful for the Utah Division of Water Quality as they try to incorporate local values and perspectives into their prioritization plans. iFellow Zack Oldroyd, who is studying Science Communication at Utah State, asked where people get their water information, revealing that a surprisingly high number of people don’t seek or receive any such information. iFellow Andre Valle, a Weber State Health Promotion major, sought to understand how well this research approach reaches a diverse cross-section of people and found that education, but not income or gender, is a very strong factor influencing whether people were willing to take part in interviews.
Over the course of the summer, Flint’s team of six completed 101 interviews in Logan and 33 in a 3-day effort in Salt Lake City. They created digital story videos by combining narration and photos with audio and transcript quotes from interviews. In the fall of 2015, they will work on creating an interactive web portal that will not only share the interviews with the wider public, but also invite more people from across Utah to share their water voices.
*USU Students Elizabeth Wynn, Charles Mascher, and Alex Brown contributed greatly to this research project by transcribing interviews, managing data, and helping to produce the multi-media videos to share water stories.
