Follow Your Gut: Laura Haynes’ Path to Becoming a Graduate Fulbright Grantee
Content
Laura Haynes is a current Anthropology doctoral student whose summer started with a combination of anxiety and excitement: Laura was initially named as an alternate selection for a Fulbright award. What seemed like a longshot would soon turn into a dream, however, as she soon-to-be-named a Fulbright Research Grantee for this year.
Laura’s research in anthropology is focused on the ‘social microbiome,’ a concept describing how behaviors, community, and immunity might develop amongst families, friends, or, in the case of Laura’s research, animal social networks. “I’m a biological anthropologist specializing in primatology essentially,” she explains.
“A lot of researchers come to primatology from an ecological perspective and then they wind up in the anthropological field. I’ve always approached the work as an anthropologist, and I really started out in primate conservation. There's this huge, intricate and cultural tie that people who live near non-human primates have; they have some sort of interaction with those primates and that's always been interesting to me.”
For Laura, she is specifically interested in the social microbiome that might develop between these primate networks and the nearby environment. Her work focuses on the Rwenzori Angolan colobus monkey, a primate whose diet primarily consists of leaves and foliage. This diet is supported by the colobus’ unique gut biome: They possess multi-chambered stomachs that help digest heavy leaves and foliage.
“One of the fascinations in studying these monkeys’ behavior stems from the fact that they have an abundant food source, nearby leaves, yet their group sizes are somewhat constrained,” Laura explained. She further described how the colobus’ microbiome might explain effects of their social structure: While there is an abundance of leaves, there is also a high level of competition over preferred leaves and forest patches. “They often have to cope with the stress of competing with their groupmates.”
These digestive advantages are of great interest and important to Laura and her fellow researchers at Lake Nabugabo in Uganda, but she notes the ‘bad blood’ between the some of the primates local to the region and their human neighbors. “They are not all viewed positively,” Laura shared. Another local primate species, vervet monkeys, are viewed as pests in the region due to their crop-raiding behavior. Without a proper understanding of the local wildlife and what prompts these behaviors, there has been a history of human-wildlife conflict.
Engaging the community both educationally and intentionally is part of Laura’s hope with the Fulbright Scholarship. “I am also working on a community art project where I’ll host workshops for community members. For the first few months we’re going to learn how to illustrate wildlife and the colobus monkeys... I want to bring an arts angle to this work because not a lot of people have an opportunity to pursue art in that community, and I think this would have a great impact on environmental education.”
When asked about her experience preparing for the Fulbright, Laura shared that she was already familiar with the application process. Having applied for a Fulbright as an undergraduate, Laura was already exposed to the level of detail and depth she needed to convey through her application materials, and how specific her research question must be. She knew she wanted to make a stronger plan for this year’s application, so she decided to connect with several Graduate School programs.
Image
“I took a grant writing course that was offered through the Anthropology department by Heidi Bauer-Clapp. Heidi had us write biographies for different funds or funders we might be interested in pursuing. You’re going into the history of the funds, why the opportunity exists... it’s almost an ethnography, which is something I had never done before for a proposal.”
Laura also worked with Heidi as one of this year’s Three Minute Thesis finalists. At the time, Laura found the idea of succinctly explaining her research in just 180 seconds to be incredibly challenging. Afterwards, however, Laura was grateful for the preparation. “Describing what I’m doing is difficult, as it is for any PhD student. I wanted to do 3MT so I could hone in on my verbal skills and use what I learn for the Fulbright interview.”
You can revisit Laura’s 3MT presentation on our YouTube channel.
In terms of additional support and champions across campus, Laura also called out the incredible support she’s received from faculty members like Jason Kamilar. “When I applied to graduate school, I got feedback that your advisor is going to make or break you. I really wanted to work with Jason after hearing about how kind he is, and all of the amazing things his students shared.”
She credits her colleagues at the Comparative Primatology Lab, also directed by Dr. Kamilar, as advocates of her work by offering ideas, feedback, and edits to her applications.
Her final shoutout was to Julie Teichroeb, co-director of Laura’s upcoming research field site in Lake Nabugabo. Having worked with Julie last summer, Laura shared that her new collaborator is extremely kind. “I’m very fortunate to have found her and to have found a site like this.”