Last weekend, ISU Department of Economics graduate students Jae-Hoon Sung, Kevin Meyer, T.J. Rakitan, and Sandip Agarwal (pictured left to right) attended the 4th annual Heartland Environmental and Resource Economics workshop at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Made possible by a grant to Midwestern universities from the US Environmental Protection Agency, the workshop offered opportunities for scholars to share and discuss current research topics in environmental economics.

This was a first conference for Meyer and Rakitan. “It was a great experience,” says Rakitan. “We got to see scientific discourse in progress, and I learned a lot.”

Meyer added, “I wasn't sure what to expect, but it turned out to be a lot of fun. I got to learn about a lot of environmental issues I had never even heard of, like the effects of floods on armed conflicts.”

Agarwal and Sung had both attended other conferences before, and this one ranked well. Says Sung, “It was a polite conference—very helpful for meeting colleagues in our field from other schools.”

Agarwal mentioned the excellent networking and learning opportunities. "There was much to see. We were able to talk to presenters and compare notes on many topics of research."

All four students agree that in years to come, these experiences will be even more compelling when they have the chance to present research of their own.