The King's Connection Magazine Volume 21 Number 3//Fall 2011 | Page 13

aluMNi News hoW can caring For creation improve the lives oF the rural poor in aFrica? T hat is the research question Dr. Harry Spaling and his research team are pursuing answers for in Kenya. The focus is on development projects such as food production and water supply that use creation’s resources for meeting basic needs. The research examines the sustainability of these projects so that resource-based livelihoods can be improved and sustained. It is applied, community-based research that typically involves Christian development agencies such as the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee or A Rocha Kenya. The research is a collaborative effort with professors and students from the King’s University College, the University of Manitoba and the University of Nairobi. King’s alum Jesse Montes (BA ENVS 2002) completed his masters under this research project via the University of Manitoba and alum Heidi Walker (BSc ENVS 2008) is currently in Kenya completing research for her masters. Opportunities for new students will be available in September 2012. ? Students interested in joining this research project for a masters or PHd degree should contact Dr. Harry Spaling at harry. [email protected] governor general’s nomination By Peter de Koning - King’s Alumus O ver the past couple years, I’ve been working on my Master’s of Science in Botany at the University of British Columbia. I had the fantastic opportunity to travel up to the Yukon in 2009 and spend the summer studying the ecology of the area (and spending ample time traveling and hiking the St. Elias mountains, Alaska, and the rest of the Yukon). I recently finished up writing and defending my thesis, investigating how plant communities and the soil in the Boreal forest are affected by global change in the environment and snowshoe hares, and more generally, how ecosystems recover after long-term disturbances. I’m happy to say I successfully defended my thesis, passed with distinction, and my work is being nominated for the Governor General’s gold medal (given for the “most outstanding academic record in the graduating class for the master’s degree with thesis”). The King’s University College gave me opportunities and mentorship I likely wouldn’t have received at larger research universities, and the broad focus of the ENVS program has suited me well here at UBC—especially the focus on learning to write and present ideas, often an under-appreciated skill. ? The King’s Connection /// Fall 2011 /// 11