The Data-Driven EnviroLab is excited to welcome two summer Research Assistants from Yale-NUS College (YNC) in Singapore, Sze Koy Ho and Ming Cheng Yap.
Working on a range of projects with other scientists and research assistants in the Lab, we are excited to see the work they accomplish and what they gain from their experience here in Chapel Hill. Read more about our summer Yale-NUS interns:
Sze Koy Ho
Sze Koy Ho is a rising YNC senior with a major in Environmental Studies and minor in Data Science. After hearing from classmates about our lab, and being encouraged to apply by professors, he decided to work with us this summer because of how well his research interests overlap. This summer, Sze Koy is working on our Urban Environment and Social Inclusion Index with Research Scientist Xuewei Wang, where he will contribute to the update and launch of our 2024 UESI report, which will be featured at the Innovate4Cities Conference September 10-12 in Montreal, Canada. He is also working with Director Dr. Hsu to analyze non-state actors’ climate goals and contributions to assess their progress on decarbonization.
We asked Sze Koy some questions about what he hopes to learn from his summer working with us in Chapel Hill:
Why did you decide to pursue this opportunity with the lab?
The lab’s work is really similar to what I’m passionate about in the environmental sciences: using remote sensing and other forms of data to generate insights and solutions to today’s climate issues. I could not pass up on the opportunity to work in the lab!
What is something you’re excited to do, or someplace you are excited to see, in North Carolina?
I’m really excited to go hiking around NC! I’ve just come back from a month-long hiking expedition in Nepal, so my hiking fever is at an all-time high, and it’s exciting to be in a state with such great hiking locations. I am hoping to go to the Great Smoky Mountains soon!
What do you hope to take away from this experience?
This is my first time working in a data lab, so I’m hoping to sharpen my data analysis and GIS skills in a working environment and learn about the workflows of working in the data sciences. Apart from that, it’s also my first time working in a country away from home. I’m also excited to learn how to live by myself so far from home, from cooking everyday to keeping myself entertained in my free time!
Ming Cheng Yap
Ming Cheng is a rising senior studying Economics at YNC with plans to start his Master’s in Public Health (MPH) this upcoming fall. He first heard about our lab from former summer DDL/YNC interns. With interests at the intersection of climate policy and public health, he is working with our PhD students, postdoctoral research associates and research scientists on our NASA-funded project to explore urban heat disparities. He is also contribute to our Urban Environment and Social Inclusion Index. On these projects, Ming Cheng is assessing the suitability of sensor-installation locations in Durham, contributing to developing high-resolution heat indices and engaging with community stakeholders to maximize impact. Living in Singapore, an equatorial country, Ming Cheng is familiar with the effects of urban heat stress. He says he is excited to work on this project to shift policy conversations toward adapting to heat-related effects of climate change.
We asked Ming Cheng the same questions about what he hopes to gain from his summer research experience:
Why did you decide to pursue this opportunity with the lab?
I am interested in climate policy, but also public health. The project I am working on is at the intersection of both, so it seemed to be a really good fit.
What is something you’re excited to do, or someplace you are excited to see, in North Carolina?
I am excited to explore the trails, hikes and nature around North Carolina trails and hikes. I’ve managed to see quite a bit of Durham through my fieldwork thus far.
What do you hope to take away from this experience?
I hope to develop a better grasp of data-driven research methods used in climate research to draw public health connections and implications. Ultimately, I want to make a more rigorous case for climate change action with public health.
While our Yale-NUS College interns are only with us for a summer, we are excited to work with them and see their research outcomes.
Recent Comments