The article was first published in Around the O on August 8, 2014.
UO professor Katie Meehan has been named a Fulbright Nexus Regional Scholar for 2014-16 and will use the award to continue her research on social and behavioral adaptation to climate change in Mexico.
Meehan, a geography professor, will be studying the institutional challenges of implementing water supply alternatives in Mexico City. The Fulbright program selects 20 distinguished scholars and researchers who conduct individual research and participate in group collaborations on climate change.
Scholars explore renewable energy, social and behavioral adaptation, climate change effects, biodiversity and food and water security. They conclude their collaborative project by meeting in Washington, D.C., to share the policy-relevant results of their research.
After learning that she had been selected, Meehan said, “It was terrific; I felt over the moon.” Meehan said that it’s really exciting to have external validation; however, she is looking forward to collaborating with scholars from Brazil and other parts of the Western Hemisphere.
Meehan will travel to Brasilia, Brazil, in mid-August to meet with the other 19 scholars. The Fulbright Nexus award is limited-residency, so Meehan will continue to teach her regularly scheduled classes, and she’ll travel to Mexico City next summer or fall to work on her individual project.