Hello! I am an incoming third year student at the University of St Andrews undertaking a joint Honours in Art History and Geography. I am interested in the intersection of the visual arts and the climate crisis; exploring the interactions between artists, cultural institutions, and the environment, past and present, as well as imagining what future interactions may look like.             In my first year with Laidlaw I undertook a research project on the environmental impact of digital practice in museums and heritage institutions. This project delved into carbon costing, water usage of data centres, and the new age of digital colonialism with mineral extraction and e-waste disposal - highlight the great ecological, economic, and social impacts of increasing digital activity. My research implemented the concept of Active Hope. I explored how different experiences of hope across and in curation with different communities could write another story of our time. I questioned how hope could be the central axis for social and environmental change within digital policy in museums.               Presently, I am based in Paris working with Karuna-Shechen for my Leadership in Action. I am writing the sixth edition of their key philanthropy output: 'Letters to our Friends'. Centred on the theme of Hope, I am carrying the insights from my first year into my conversations with colleagues across the field in India and Nepal. I am writing articles that capture the charities' commitment to alleviate poverty and how they pass agency back into the hands of the communities they support. 

I am an undergraduate student at Brown pursuing undergraduate education in Computer Science and Chemistry. I intend to proceed to Medical School and ultimately specialize in Neurosurgery. I play soccer.

Hello! I am currently a rising sophomore at Brown University, and I intend to concentrate in Computer Science (A.B.) and Religious Studies. I have a deep passion for writing and am considering a future in law. A lot of my work in the past has centered the importance of uplifting youth voices and autonomy within the community and at institutional levels, so I am excited to continue that legacy as a Laidlaw Scholar. 

Currently studying Materials Science at Imperial College.  I have a strong passion for helping my local community in Bangladesh. While I may have not been born or raised there, I think this is a really good opportunity to understand what vulenerable communities face and what I can do to support them.

UCL undergrad studying neuroscience with an intrest is psychological conditions. A proud and active socailist who at least tries to take action on a range of issues from government cuts to Palestine. History buff and gamer (I know, I should be ashamed, but it's true).  I try to be open and avaiable to talk :).

Human Sciences finalist at University of Oxford, with a particular interest in health promotion and creation. Away from my studies, I am a keen triathlete, and love reading, tennis and cooking!

Hi! My name is Isha and I am a rising junior in the College of Arts & Sciences majoring in Biology of Global Health. While I grew up in the suburbs of NYC for most of my life, I lived in Singapore for 4 of those years. This summer, I will be researching failed single-stranded annealing events in drosophila under the guidance of Dr. Jan LaRocque. 

Hello! I am Mairéad, a PPE student at Durham University. I am really interested in social justice and how human rights are upheld/fail to be upheld. I have aspirations to work in the international human rights sector. I am excited to hear about other people's research and looking forward to being part of the 2024 cohort of research and leadership scholars!  Outside of academics, I'm quite involved in some charity and activist work, particularly around the protection of refugee rights. I'm also big into netball and run my college's team!

Hi I'm Conor, I'm a second year History and Political Science Student at Trinity College Dublin. I'm also born and raised in Dublin. This summer I will be researching the topic of refugee youth integration. I hope that this research will contribute towards helping understand a subject that is becoming more politically charged and relevant by the day, in a world that is more connected than ever before. In my spare time, I like to exercise, read, and walk my dog Cócó. I've also been known to enjoy a good Netflix series. If you too are interested in anything that I've mentioned above don't hesitate to reach out - even if its just to recommend a good new tv show.

Hello! I’m Trisha, a fourth-year student at Cornell University from Texas, USA. I’m majoring in Environment and Sustainability with a dual focus on food systems and wildlife conservation, and minoring in International Relations. My interests in combining my enduring passions for writing and wildlife conservation have driven me to explore multiple perspectives on highly-controversial issues such as trophy hunting, retaliatory animal killings, and illegal wildlife crime. Thus, during my first summer as a Laidlaw Scholar and as a member of the Morally Contested Conservation team, I wrote a literature review on the interconnectedness of climate change and human-wildlife conflicts in East and southern Africa. In June and July 2024, I furthered this research by traveling to the University of Oxford and to the Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tanzania. I will be returning to Oxford and Burunge in June and July 2025 to report my results.  As an aspiring environmental policymaker and journalist, I am passionate about making technical scientific information more accessible to the general public. At Cornell, I am an Institute of Politics and Global Affairs Scholar, through which I interact with policymakers monthly to discuss pervasive issues in international politics. I also speak Marathi, Spanish, and Swahili at varying levels of fluency and plan to continue to grow my language skills to communicate environmental issues across continents and cultures.  For fun, I love to turn even the most mundane materials into recycled art, spend hours on end working through jigsaw puzzles, and go for runs while listening to podcasts. And as a diehard foodie who loves to travel, I’m always looking for recommendations of places to visit or new recipes to try!  The Laidlaw Scholars Program has been an invaluable component of my undergraduate experience. The friendships I’ve made, as well as the research and language skills I’ve begun to develop, have encouraged me to continue to ask and seek answers to complicated questions about global affairs and environmental science. If anyone has questions or feedback about the Laidlaw Program, is interested in collaborating, or just wants to say hello, please feel free to email me at trb238@cornell.edu. I hope we can meet in person someday!