Life in the Field

Blog

Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

COVID-19: A Student's Perspective

by Ani Williams

I am currently sitting on the SFS center terrace watching the sun come up over the surrounding Himalayan peaks while I sip my coffee. Dogs are barking in the distance,...
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March 16, 2020
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Conservation at Its Finest

by Maicen Stuart

A common and unfortunate aspect of travel is exhaustion. Whenever abroad, there tends to be a perpetual state of it. So, when told to get up at 4 a.m., one...
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March 15, 2020
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Savoring the Moment in Bhutan

by Ani Williams

Our breath puffed out mist in front of us as we ran toward the jagged Himalayan peaks jutting into the sky. They were so big it looked like we could...
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March 10, 2020
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Valley of Transformation

by Lucy Bock

Every place I have traveled to has had its unique cultural treasure chest to share with those who are lucky enough to visit. Bhutan’s is filled with intricately decorated architecture...
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February 19, 2020
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

An Elephant Ate My Directed Research Paper: A Final Reflection

by Cooper Dart

In the back corner of the Center, a small, plastic-walled greenhouse sits with its door hanging open on a broken hinge. Soon after arriving, it became my quiet place. I...
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December 18, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Slowing Down in the Himalayas

by Alex Nazzaro

With only a month left in Bhutan, I hope to take back the sense of slowness and calm I’ve felt here. I’ve gotten used to going with the flow and...
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December 3, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Staff Post

Directed Research in Bhutan

by Annika Min

Directed Research in Bhutan: Farms, Roads, Trees, and Trash - with a Side of Milk Tea As our semester draws to a close, the students of SFS Bhutan have been...
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November 26, 2019 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

The Himalayas at Sunrise

by Olivia Etherton

At my back, a weathered stone meditation hut canted, the flutter of its prayer flags coloring the breeze. At my feet were a spattering of ground-hugging flowers and fragrant, miniaturized...
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November 5, 2019
Australia
Rainforest Studies
Staff Post

2019 SFS Photo Contest Winners!

by Lora Doughty

SFS recently announced the winners of our 2019 photo contest, which ran from Fall 2018 to Summer 2019. This year's contest saw more than 600 entries - spanning 9 SFS...
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October 18, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

An Unexpected Lunch

by Oaklea Elfström

We were hot, sweaty, sore, tired, and hungry when we peeked through the monastery gate. Unsure whether we’d be welcome to look around the grounds, we hesitantly tiptoed in. All...
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October 8, 2019 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

In Search of Understanding

by Helen Dugmore

At 7,000 feet above sea level, the sun is intense. So intense that I can feel it slice through me with the perfect aim of a Bhutanese master archer, neatly...
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July 30, 2019 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Yuko Nakano
Student Post

Final Impressions of Bhutan: Hatch, Crack, Fly

by Yuko Nakano

  At the beginning of the spring semester, we asked student Yuko Nakano about her first impressions of Bhutan. Now, after a semester in country, we reconnected with Yuko.  ...
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May 8, 2019 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Staff Post

Bhutan: A Look Back

by Marta Brill, M.A.

This summer will mark a momentous occasion -- ten years of consecutive programming for The School for Field Studies in the Kingdom of Bhutan. From its inception through the spring...
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April 15, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Vishva Nalamalapu
Student Post

From Silence to Noise

by Vishva Nalamalapu

Our plane shudders to a halt on the runway of Paro Airport. I step out, and I am immediately enveloped by an expansive silence that engulfs the valley and everything...
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April 8, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Faculty Post

The Hidden Himalayas

by Jesse Lewis, M.S.

Camera Traps Reveal the Hidden Himalayas The forests of the Eastern Himalayas are some of the most biodiverse in the world, and are the last stronghold for many threatened wildlife...
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April 8, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Faculty Post

Harmonious Phobjikha

by Purna Chhetri, Ph.D.

I will now continue my story of fascinating Phobjikha valley, about which I said “Every season the valley is in different a mode and mood”. This time I will tell...
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March 12, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Love Resides in the Bhutanese Flowers

by Kaya Pulz

Ten years ago, I am swimming through a sea of entrepreneurs and aspiring reality TV guest stars. I’m looking up, seeing not one familiar face, and realising that they can’t...
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March 12, 2019 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Yuko Nakano
Student Post

First Impressions of Bhutan

by Yuko Nakano

As the Spring 2019 SFS students begin to settle into their new homes around the world, we asked them to share their impressions of the experience so far. Yuko Nakano...
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February 11, 2019
Australia
Rainforest Studies
Staff Post

2018 Photo Contest Winners!

by Kris Pieper

SFS recently announced the winners of the 2018 photo contest, which ran from Fall 2017 to Summer 2018. This year's contest saw more than 650 entries from 78 students -...
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January 16, 2019
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Final Impressions of Bhutan

by Erin Baggs

At the beginning of the fall semester, we asked student Erin Baggs about her first impressions of Bhutan. Now, as the semester comes to a close, she shared her thoughts...
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December 6, 2018 
		
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Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

Green Chilies and Red Rice

by Amanda Eason

I eat the same breakfast everyday: a large heaping of rice with a small dollop of chilies. The proportion is intentional and essential. Without the chilies the rice would be...
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November 6, 2018
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Student Post

My Identity Abroad

by Waverly Lau

I am Chinese American and am proud of it. I was born and raised in NYC, but both my parents were born in Hong Kong, China. Since I grew up...
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October 26, 2018
Bhutan
Himalayan Environment and Development Studies
Faculty Post

Among the Wildflowers

by Jesse Lewis, M.S.

Innumerable switchbacks guide our way steadily up towards the 14,000 foot Chele-la, one of the highest road passes in Bhutan linking the Paro and Haa Valleys. Having reached mid way...
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October 9, 2018 
		
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