Scholar learns importance of conservation to Bhutanese culture during semester abroad
Scholar researches humanitarian applications of drone technology
On one hand, the appeal of spending a semester in Bhutan was simple for Scholar Olivia Richart.
Katie Gustas’ time as a Penn State supply chain major taught her that effective supply chains aren’t just good for business. They can also save lives.
“I thought to myself, I’ve literally never heard of this country in my life,” the agriculture science major said.
For her honors thesis, the 2020 graduate examined how unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are utilized to bring medical supplies and resources to citizens in Rwanda, and how they could be applied in other areas of sub-Saharan Africa.
Though the idea of wanting to explore a new part of the world was a factor for Richart, her semester spent in the South Asian country through The School for Field Studies in Fall 2019 was also an ideal blend of her interest in the outdoors and her primary areas of study, as well as fertile ground for her honors thesis research on forest management policy. “I thought that would be a great way to do hands-on thesis work and also to do it in a context that a lot of people don’t have the opportunity to go to,” said Richart, who graduated in May.
Gustas, of Hermitage, Pennsylvania, wanted to pursue a thesis that showed direct outcomes and how supply-chain technology could be used for more than commerce. “I like the motive of having an impact be your driver for creating something,” she said. The Kingdom of Bhutan, a nation of roughly 740,000 people, has heavily restricted visitation and tourism policies. It waives its visa requirement for participants of the SFS program, though, so Richart and her fellow students in the directed research program were guests of the Bhutanese government. Richart was able to collect the bulk of her research on the effects of Buddhism on forest management policy. Her group studied how climate change was stressing trees and how secondary infestations like mistletoe and beetles would cause unprecedented levels of diebacks — trees slowly dying from peripheral parts being killed — in pine trees. They discovered two potentially new species of beetle in the process. Richart also learned that the environment is closely tied to Bhutan’s government — the nation has a mandated forest cover of 70% — its economy, and its religion. The species of blue pine that is dying, Pinus wallichiana, is its primary building material and very important in its culture. “They encourage people to steward the land with conservation in mind, not specifically because of climate change but more because they feel like it impacts Bhutan’s wholesomeness as a primarily Buddhist country. They feel like it makes it a less holy place if you’re not stewarding the forest with conservation in mind.” Being immersed in Bhutan and spending time with its people — including a group of Buddhist monks who had been living alone for the previous eight months — helped Richart better understand the importance of the specific species of pine she was researching to the Bhutanese.
For her thesis, Gustas focused on one UAV company, Zipline, and how it served a particular population: transporting blood to mothers suffering from post-partum hemorrhaging in Rwanda. Gustas spoke to multiple drone carriers and discovered one of the biggest issues they faced was finding ways to quantify the benefit/impact drone blood delivery can make. She learned that centralizing blood storages to a pair of distribution centers in Rwanda as opposed to a variety of hospitals both limited waste and increased the number of available blood types. The UAVs also allowed doctors access to frozen plasma and other products that would otherwise require specialized freezers, which most local hospitals could not afford. She used population statistics, combined with hospital data and Zipline’s geographical/max capacity in an Excel analysis to quantify the potential number of mothers’ lives that could be saved annually by alleviating postpartum hemorrhaging. Gustas, who now works for KPMG as a product operations and procurement advisory assistant, has seen firsthand the devastating effects of post-partum hemorrhaging. During a study abroad trip to an orphanage in Kenya, she worked directly with girls who had lost their mothers to complications in childbirth. “I would love to see the implementation of this drone delivery service save mothers all around the world,” she said. “There are endless ways these services can help save lives through blood delivery or provided medical services.”
Richart is currently working as a wildland firefighter in Ukiah, Oregon, and was recently accepted into the aviation division of the Washington State National Guard.
14
Help Scholars take advantage of global study opportunities. Visit giveto.psu.edu/SHCTravel
Help Scholars conduct impactful research. Visit giveto.psu.edu/SHCResearchGrants
15
