When Ken Wang arrived at the George Washington University in fall 2021, he viewed the intersection of science and technology as a tool for solving global problems such as climate change. Interested in science with a knack for business, Wang thought technology could be an integral part of the solution for addressing climate issues by creating products that can adapt to people’s entire life.
“Technology needs to be more sustainable and energy efficient without altering lifestyle,” he said.
That approach was crucial to Wang’s perspective on addressing inefficiencies and environmental degradation that he brought to GW, where he double majored in environmental studies and geography with a minor in geographic information systems (GIS).
But through the Department of Geography and Environment, Wang discovered a true passion for GIS under the mentorship of professor Brendan Hurley, the director of the GIS certificate. Even when things were challenging.
When Wang started, he had hardships with the technology, but over time he realized that he wasn’t alone in the difficulty of learning new techniques essential to perfecting geospatial analysis. Wang said Hurley encouraged many students to take on the challenging coursework like Intermediate GIS because, as Wang puts it, “GIS is worth getting out of your comfort zone.”
“Dr. Hurley is the reason I didn’t give up on GIS,” Wang said. “He puts it as ‘the greatest difference between you and me is that I have made the same mistake a million times.’”
It was the challenging and rewarding nature of GIS that inspired Wang to map with YouthMappers, GW’s student-led mapping community that facilitates nutrition and medical resources getting to people in need overseas. Wang collaborated with other YouthMappers to examine and give feedback to many projects like Kenya Tech University in Nairobi, Kenya.
“Students from [Technical University of Kenya] would use OpenSource software to map roads, hospitals and buildings, and it depends on the information put into the system,” Wang said.
Wang also worked with YouthMappers to help facilitate improvements in Bangladesh to “ensure resources are getting to where they need to go,” particularly in the Lakshmipur Sadar Upazila district of the coastal city of Chittagong.
For Wang, YouthMappers solidified the importance of collaborative environments in harnessing the power of geography to protect people and the environment.
“YouthMappers gave me real world experience and gave me the opportunity to mentor other students,” he said.
As a recent graduate from GW, Wang will pursue a M.A. in urban and environmental policy and planning at Boston’s Tufts University in the fall, where he intends to further the tools that technology can provide to serve the planet.
While at GW, the Center for Career Services channeled and amplified Wang’s voice, while giving him lifetime opportunities and community. Director of Career Learning and Experiences Katherine Norton and former Career Coach for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Dennis Weeks collaborated with Wang on his graduate school applications.
Wang’s advice to undergraduates is to immerse themselves in different groups of people, to “put yourself out there.”
He will remain forever grateful to GW for introducing him to a refined passion and offering him a roadmap to make a difference through his unique skillsets and desires.
“[GW] made me who I am right now,” Wang said.
