Engaging: Transforming Ideas into Impacts Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts Dean's Report 2021-2022

Revealing the Impact of Rooftop Solar

Homeowners who install solar panels use more electricity than before they went green, which could have important implications for energy planning and climate change mitigation efforts, according to an analysis by Ivan Allen College researchers.

The study, led by Daniel Matisoff and Ross Beppler in the School of Public Policy and Matthew Oliver in the School of Economics, found that nearly a third of the electricity generated by solar power customers of one Eastern U.S. utility company went to increased energy usage. This dulls the energy savings and carbon offsets that green energy advocates hope to see from solar and other renewable energies.

More and more, states are effectively providing subsidies for consumers to install rooftop solar on their homes,” says Matisoff. “This study is a step toward helping policymakers understand if the investments they are making in encouraging the expansion of solar energy are worth the cost.”

Fostering Disaster Resilience Through Map Making

A Georgia Tech-led project is using a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation to promote youth advocacy for disaster resilience with map making.

The pilot program, led by Yanni Loukissas in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication and Allen Hyde in the School of History and Sociology, as well as a variety of researchers and community partners, is focused on the west side of Savannah, a historically Black coastal community facing the dual challenges of environmental disasters and social inequity. Over a 12-session curriculum, middle school students participate in interactive map-making techniques with a digital civics tool called Map Spot.

We argue that participating in advocacy work can help youth increase self and collective efficacy, as well as connect them to a broader network of potential allies and advocates,” says Meaghan McSorley, project manager, proposal co-author, and Ph.D. student in the School of City and Regional Planning. “In addition to the potential for infrastructural change, these social and individual psychosocial changes, in themselves, can enhance resilience.”

Black Media Studies Finds a Home at Georgia Tech

At the heart of the story of the city of Atlanta, the Black experience is rooted deeply in the neighborhoods, politics, and sound of the city too busy to hate. Georgia Tech’s newest minor program, Black Media Studies, brings that unique perspective to the classroom to explore the cultural connections between people of the African diaspora.

Housed in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, Black Media Studies examines topics such as Afrofuturism, Hip Hop, and Black Southern experience through the lens of digital technology. The minor is open to all students, and Georgia Tech and its faculty hopes it complements any of the Institute’s majors to develop well-rounded professionals.

An industrial design major who wants to design for Nike, for example, may want to understand the ways in which media culture, particularly race and society, all intersect together,” poses Wilson. “Or a student in the Scheller College of Business may want to go into the entertainment or technology industry to work for a corporation who values culture. There are so many opportunities the BMS minor can provide for the students at Georgia Tech. This is a major move not only for the School, but the College as well as the Institute.”

A ‘Local Lesson’ in Global Philanthropy

The Western philosophy of helping the less fortunate is often altruistic, but sometimes doesn’t produce the positive impact intended. But what if we can be more intentional about how we give back and bring meaningful programs and resources to communities in need?

Kirk Bowman, a professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs and Regents' Entrepreneur, partnered with his longtime friend, banker Jon Wilcox, to test out this theory. The results included 32 grants ranging from $1,000 to $25,000 distributed to different organizations in marginalized communities in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil through their nonprofit, Rise Up & Care. Bowman documented their work in his book, Reimagining Global Philanthropy: The Community Bank Model of Social Development.

Inspired by leaders of local nonprofit organizations like badminton training centers, circuses, theaters, and dance troupes, Bowman and Wilcox wanted to study how grant-givers can better support these efforts.

We don’t go into a circus or a theater group and tell them how they should innovate or change their practice,” Bowman says. “We only serve as a supporting role.”

Bowman furthered the work of his book by launching a Vertically Integrated Program (VIP) so that students could get hands-on experience applying the book’s principles. Thanks to that program, Rise Up & Care created a children’s book and delivered free copies to residents of Rio’s favelas to support children’s literacy.

Understanding the Conflict in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine is technologically, culturally, and historically complex, and understanding it takes an interdisciplinary team of experts. When hostilities broke out in the Eastern European country, Ivan Allen College experts mobilized to help explain what was happening to a curious public and what the West could do about it.

From the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs’ deep expertise in European and Russian military capabilities and the insight of noted Russia experts in the School of Modern Languages and the School of History and Sociology to uniquely insightful writings and poetry readings organized by Ukrainian-born poet Ilya Kaminsky, the Bourne Chair in Poetry in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, Ivan Allen College experts spoke to the press, organized panel discussions, and reworked classroom discussions to provide students with a real-time window into the unfolding crisis.

Combating COVID-19 Misinformation in Peru — with Instagram

Tell someone an article contains misinformation, and they can avoid it for a day. Teach them how to spot misinformation, though, and they can avoid it for a lifetime. At least, that’s how Alejandra Ruiz-León, a Ph.D. student in the School of History and Sociology, sees it.

We have a big misinformation issue in Peru,” she explains.

But with a background in biochemistry, unique insight from her History and Sociology of Technology and Science Ph.D. program, and 68,000 followers on Instagram, Ruiz-León saw an opportunity to make a difference. Now she is one of the most prominent science communicators in her home country of Peru, where she focuses on teaching people how to spot misinformation.

In doing so, Ruiz-León has collaborated with the National Library of Peru, created Instagram live videos with congress members, and attended a ministry communication meeting to discuss how the Peruvian government can better promote the COVID-19 vaccine. She also presents content for school children on national TV — the only channel that translates programming into Peru’s indigenous languages — where she’s proud to represent little girls in STEM who don’t often see young women speaking on the topic.

Creating a New Master’s in Global Development

Georgia Tech’s new Master of Science in Global Development prepares graduate students to respond to challenges of climate change, rapid urbanization, and growing inequality in developing cities. Several organizations, such as Google and the World Bank, supported Georgia Tech’s proposal for the new degree.

Given the likely growth in demand for professionals with domain expertise in global development, we would be well-served by additional strong programs training the next generation of policy professionals in this field,” says Karan Bhatia, vice president of government relations and public policy at Google. “Georgia Tech, with its well-regarded programs in city and regional planning, economics, and international affairs, and its global reach, is well-positioned to contribute usefully to addressing this need.”

Engineered to Protect Our Nation

The best training and latest equipment make the difference between life and death for America’s military forces. Cadets of Georgia Tech’s Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) experienced this first-hand through a multi-disciplinary program at Georgia Tech focused on solving the most important mission-critical challenges facing Army personnel.

The inaugural Marine Innovations Workshop paired students with Fort Stewart’s 3rd Infantry Division to address issues soldiers faced with protecting mounted gear, managing ammunition supply, and developing a predictive model for gunnery performance.

It challenged the cadets’ critical thinking skills and their ability to analyze a problem and come up with a solution or recommend a solution,” says Lt. Col. Clifford Woodburn, commanding officer and professor of the practice of Georgia Tech’s Army ROTC. “It also put them right in direct contact with soldiers and non-commissioned officers.”

Georgia Tech’s Army ROTC cadets worked in teams alongside cadets from Kennesaw State University and West Point. Students represented various disciplines including engineering, computer science, and international affairs. The semester-long project culminated in a four-day workshop where the students presented their solutions and showcased engineered prototypes.

Tracking Georgia's Climate Progress

Knowing that you and your neighbors need to do something about climate change is one thing. Being able to see how your community is doing when it comes to climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions is entirely another. That was the goal of the Georgia emissions tracker built by members of the Drawdown Georgia research team led by Marilyn Brown, Regents’ Professor and Brook Byers Professor of Sustainable Systems. The tracker allows users to track emissions by county, month, year, and energy sector to learn how their community is doing over time and help inspire Georgians to get involved in combatting climate change. To explore emissions across Georgia, visit drawdownga.gatech.edu.

Identifying U.S. States with Multidimensional Poverty

Research from Associate Professor Shatakshee Dhongde in the School of Economics revealed that people living in California, Texas, and Florida were more likely than other U.S. residents to experience multiple forms of deprivation, such as lack of access to healthcare or affordable housing. These multiple deprivations combined to push many into a state of poverty that has not been picked up in official income-based measures.

This is important because there was much variation across states in how the Great Recession and the following recovery affected the multidimensional poor,” Dhongde says. “Now we can apply those lessons to Covid recovery efforts to help ensure the policies are as effective as possible and reaching the people who need it the most.”

Leading the Way in Georgia

Ivan Allen College faculty members who help run a global nonprofit, research ways to make technology more accessible, and work to make engineering more equitable are among the Georgia Tech faculty members named to prestigious appointments by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

Willie Pearson, a professor in the School of History and Sociology, was named a Regents’ Professor. He is a sociologist and co-editor of the groundbreaking book, Changing the Face of Engineering: The African American Experience. The 2015 book was the first compilation of interdisciplinary research demonstrating and documenting the underrepresentation of black engineers. Pearson is an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences and a member of the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s Advisory Committee for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences.

Kirk Bowman, a professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, was selected for the inaugural group of Regents’ Entrepreneurs. He is the co-founder of Rise Up & Care, a nonprofit spearheading an innovative method of global philanthropy that empowers local leaders through a cost-effective funding model for organizations such as badminton training centers, circuses, theatres, and dance troupes. He also leads the Global Social Entrepreneurship VIP, where Georgia Tech students learn about the model and work to help spread the word and generate resources for community leaders.

Brad Fain, executive research director and principal research scientist of the Center for Advanced Communications Policy (CACP), was named a Regents’ Researcher. Fain leads a team of research scientists who focus on issues related to the development, implementation, and adoption of communications technologies, especially among aging populations and people with disabilities.

Exploring Women’s History Through Digital Storytelling

The first full-time female students were not admitted to Georgia Tech until 1952 – nearly 70 years after the Institute’s founding. What was it like for those first women on campus, and how has it changed as the percentage of women on campus has continued to grow?

Michelle Ramirez, a digital media master’s student in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, wanted to explore women’s experiences on campus in a way that not only celebrates their remarkable achievements but shows the reality of attending a male-dominated institution. She invited trans women, non-binary folks, and cis women connected to Georgia Tech to share their digitized photography, paintings, creative writing, and research papers for an exhibition titled SDG 5, Gender Equality: Reimagining our Future through Art and Technology.

The exhibition aims to connect diverse research methods, artistic endeavors, and knowledge production occurring today on Georgia Tech’s campus,” Ramirez says. “It is not a space to simply showcase women in technology, but to demonstrate how women and gender non-conforming folks in technology are reshaping research questions and pushing artistic boundaries, which can bring us closer to accomplishing this grand goal.”

Language and Leadership Training for ROTC Cadets

When you think of military training, you might envision soldiers running obstacle courses or jumping out of planes. However, the language training opportunities offered by the School of Modern Languages through a renewed Project Global Officer (Project GO) grant are also crucial to tomorrow’s military leaders, explains Lt. Col. David Cumings.

The U.S. Department of Defense/Defense Language and National Security Education Office awarded Georgia Tech a Project GO grant to provide training to cadets across the nation and fund proposed language programming in Korean, Japanese, and Russian.

Project GO is an immensely valuable program that all of our future military members can benefit from,” says Cumings, commander of Georgia Tech’s Air Force ROTC detachment. “The cadets who are selected for participation in Project GO build confidence, improve adaptability, maintain calm under pressure, and develop new stress management techniques, all of which tremendously benefit young officers.”

Dean Kaye Husbands Fealing Appointed to Aspen Economic Strategy Group

Kaye Husbands Fealing, dean of the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, is taking her expertise in advocating for diversity in STEM professions, economics, and advancement of liberal arts education to a national stage.

Fealing was appointed to the Aspen Economic Strategy Group — a program of the Aspen Institute — joining a distinguished group of leaders seeking solutions to issues impacting America’s economy.

The group, comprised of individuals in business, government, and academia—look to foster bi-partisan relationships among current and future policy leaders in Washington D.C. in hopes of promoting change in our current economic environment.