Alida Schefers
Major: Linguistics
Class of 2021, POM
My name is Alida Schefers (アリーダ• シェーファスin Japanese). I am from Connecticut, and currently an undeclared major. I am interested in geology, linguistics, and the Japanese language and culture. I am also interested in languages in general, having studied German, Latin, American Sign Language, and Japanese. I am also personally interested in disability and access because of my disability: I became paralyzed from the waist down at age 10. I would like to learn more about accessibility and perceptions of disability, and I look forward to seeing how my interest in this and Japan intertwine.
Bailey Lai
Major: Environmental Analysis (Sustainability and the Built Environment Track)
Class of 2019, POM
I was born in Hong Kong, but my family and I immigrated to the US when I was very young. I spent the first half of my childhood in San Gabriel Valley, and my family and I have been in a suburb south of Denver since my sixth grade. From a heavily urbanized, working-class, immigrant neighborhood in SoCal to a semi-rural, affluent, white suburb in Colorado, I felt like I experienced two polar opposites of American life when I was growing up. I really like the outdoors, whether it’s hiking trails or exploring cities, even though I never do enough of it. I also LOVE food and drinks (boba milk tea)! I hope that by joining EnviroLab Asia, I can learn how non-Western societies like Japan perceive and interact with their collective environments—built and natural.
Caitlyn Louzado
Major: Economics and Psychology
Class of 2021, CMC
My name is Caitlyn Louzado and I come from a small city in India called Pune. I went to a residential high school called Mahindra United World College in rural India. I am very excited to be working on research and learning about Japan. EnviroLab Asia has sparked my interest because of its inter-disciplinary approach to looking at environmental issues. As an Economics and Psychology major who also is passionate about the environment, I hope to bring a new perspective as well as learn from the other people in my class. I also look forward to the experiential aspect of the Clinic Trip where we will be applying what we have worked on during the semester.
Chloe Wanaselja
Major: Environmental Analysis and Studio Art
Class of 2021, POM
I am from Berkeley, California, where environmentalism was instilled in me from a young age. I am very drawn to Envirolab Asia’s emphasis on interdisciplinary study, as I am interested in the intersections between science, particularly biology, and art. I use this lens to explore environmental issues, making art on topics like sea level rise and ocean acidification. As focus on environmental issues only becomes more important, we need to utilize as many avenues as possible for change and innovation. It is very exciting to work with other students who feel similarly and to be able to conduct research on such pressing issues. It is even more exciting to experientially learn about how another culture tackles global issues within their specific context, especially in a place as amazing as Japan.
Citlalli Vivar
Major: Politics (Public Policy and Economics Track) and Spanish, Latin American, and Caribbean Literatures and Cultures
Class of 2021, SCR
My name is Citlalli Vivar and I’m a first-generation student at Scripps College. I am dual majoring in Politics on the Public Policy and Economics track and in Spanish, Latin American, and Caribbean Literatures and Cultures. I’m excited to take part of EnviroLab Asia since I’m interested in further learning about the interconnectedness of policy, economics, and sustainability. The Soundscapes Lab gives me an opportunity to explore that in a wider context.
Elena Dypiangco
Major: English
Class of 2019, SCR
Elena Dypiangco is a senior at Scripps College from Hacienda Heights, CA. She is an English major and a Media Studies minor. Her thesis “The Body Intimate: Poetic and Critical Formulations of Violence Across Space and Time” is a hybrid (part creative, part critical) piece that explores what it means for bodies to contain discrete identities and how poets throughout the world operate within varying political and aesthetic frameworks to grapple with difficult historical lineages. Through EnviroLab, Elena hopes to continue developing her critical thinking skills and interrogation of the natural world; she anticipates pursuing a career in either education or arts activism.
Erika MacDonald
Major: Engineering
Class of 2021, HMC
I am a sophomore Engineering major at Harvey Mudd and am specifically interested in environmental engineering. I grew up in Connecticut, but spent my summers near Kitakyushu, Japan, where my mother’s side of the family lives. I’m interested in EnviroLab Asia because of my interest in environmental engineering and because of my Japanese heritage. I’m excited to learn more about environmental issues and to explore parts of Japan that I haven’t had the opportunity to explore in the past. I have been volunteering at a sustainable, organic farm in southern Ontario twice a week this past semester, so I’m excited to be part of the Food and Rural Issues Lab to learn more about sustainable food production in an academic setting.
Julie Xu
Major: Environmental Analysis (Science Track) & Japanese
Class of 2022, PTZ
I am a Pitzer College freshman from Irvine, CA. My first-hand experiences in Asia when I was young inspired me to learn more about the environment. Growing up in a city known for rapid city development and exponential population growth, I witnessed that because we flattened the mountains for houses and replaced nature with cities, we harmed the environment and significantly degraded the air quality. I became very concerned about the degrading air quality as I realized my friends and family became sick more easily. I am looking forward to applying my knowledge in both environmental analysis and Japanese to study the environmental issues I care as a group in Japan.
Katheryn Kornegay
Major: Physics
Class of 2020, POM
My name is Katheryn Kornegay. I am a junior Physics major at Pomona College. After graduation I plan to attend graduate school to learn more about how we can get renewable energies, specifically solar, to be a larger contributor to the world’s energy production. I am interested in EnviroLab Asia because of its intersection between community engagement and environmental justice. It is not enough to learn about a community’s issues. I believe that the best way to be taught about how we can better change a place is by actually engaging hands-on with its people and community.
Krystle Yu
Major: Organizational Studies, Asian American Studies
Class of 2019, PTZ
Krystle Yu (she/her/hers) is a senior at Pitzer College studying Organizational Studies and Asian American Studies. She is from Arcadia, California. On campus, she has been involved in the Asian Pacific American Coalition (APAC), First-Gen, Identity Board, and other community engagement opportunities. You can also find her consulting her peers at the Writing Center and Career Services. In her spare time, she enjoys playing the flute, watching Netflix, and spending time with friends.
Kyra Madunich
Major: Biology
Class of 2021, POM
My name is Kyra Madunich and I grew up in the Galapagos Islands, where I was instilled with a sense of love and respect for biodiversity. After moving to Claremont and then spending a year in Morocco, this interest in understanding ecological processes as a form of sacred practice grew as I began to study the intersections between religious spaces and community responsibility. I am now majoring in Biology, and I’m excited to explore what role people play in protecting biodiversity in the context of Japanese culture, which is an area I have never had the chance to explore. Outside of school, I’m usually hiking, camping, learning languages, or taking photos.
Malea Martin
Major: Literature and Government
Class of 2019, CMC
Malea Martin is a senior at Claremont McKenna College majoring in Literature and Government. She is from San Luis Obispo, California, a small town on the central coast of California. Malea’s interest in EnviroLab stems from her interdisciplinary dual major. She hopes that in EnviroLab Asia, she can learn more about how literature, politics, the environment and more intersect.
Meenakshi Venkatraman
Major: Engineering and Environmental Analysis (Policy Track)
Class of 2020, HMC
My name is Meenakshi Venkatraman. I’m Indian and I grew up in Singapore, where I developed an interest in Asian and urban environmental issues in particular. I am now a third-year student, double majoring in Engineering and the policy track of Environmental Analysis. I hope to use both majors to bridge the communication gap between those working in technical and non-technical fields, especially engineers and policymakers. I am also doing a concentration in Asian Studies. I am interested in applying these subjects to environmental design, policy and planning, and particularly to the design of cities to help minority populations, including disabled people. Outside of school, I enjoy dancing, drawing, and traveling.
Nhi Phan
Major: Environmental Analysis (Science Concentration)
Class of 2021, CMC
My name is Nhi Phan, and I am currently a sophomore at Claremont McKenna College. I was born in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, but most of my childhood was spent in San Diego, California. I am majoring in Environmental Analysis with a science concentration. I wanted to be able to study environmental issues on an international scale, and to be able to understand what kinds of problems affect people around the world.
Willow Coleman
Major: Mathematical and Computational Biology
Class of 2021, HMC
I’m a sophomore at Harvey Mudd College majoring in Mathematical and Computational Biology. I grew up in Guilford, Connecticut, but immediately fell in love with the LA weather, mountains, and ocean. My future plans include trying to figure out my career goals and spending more time hiking. I’m excited to take part in Envirolab Asia to explore topics I’m passionate about, such as biodiversity and studying the built environment in urban areas, in a different cultural context and continent.
Suh Won Sarah Chang
Major: Environment and Society (Pitzer) and Literature (CMC)
Class of 2021, CMC
Suh Won Sarah Chang is a sophomore intrigued by the interactions between culture, art, and nature. Her personal interests lie in researching how cultural differences influence the framing of environment and nature, and how that view translates itself into art, mostly literature. She was born in Los Angeles, California, moved to Chicago, IL, then spent most of her life in South Korea before moving back to California for college. She has always loved animals, volunteering throughout her high school years in an animal shelter and spending a summer at a South African wildlife sanctuary. In her free time, she loves to do literary analysis of themes and characters; reading from the Orion, the Antennae, and the Art by Nature magazines; doing acrylic paintings of wildlife; and baking.
Yufei Guo
Major: Anthropology
Class of 2021, SCR
My name is Yufei Guo. I am a second year at Scripps College and I am an international student from Beijing, China. My major is anthropology with a minor (or potential dual major) in Japanese. I am also interested in film and filmmaking, so I am trying to take some media studies classes. My interest in Envirolab Asia is to explore the environmental issue in Asia using interdisciplinary methods. For my specific lab, I want to learn about how the infrastructures of a society influence the perception of people with disability and the definition of disability. I am interested in looking into people with disability’s life from an anthropological perspective and explore the culture of Japan in this unique way.
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