Fulbright Grant for Research in Chile

James Trostle

Professor of Anthropology James Trostle has been awarded a Fulbright grant to teach a graduate seminar at the University of Chile in Santiago. The grant, which will run from March 2014 through July, will also allow Trostle to lecture at different sites in Chile and conduct research on the health impact of road development. His teaching and research will emphasize an interdisciplinary approach, making use of collaborations among social scientists, epidemiologists, healthcare specialists, ecologists, and geographers.

A medical anthropologist with training and experience in epidemiology and public health, Trostle noted in his Fulbright proposal that “Chile offers a number of benefi ts for this project: it has a long and creative history of community public health, it has undergone rapid rural and urban social and economic development, and it has a strong educational system.”

His research uses anthropological and epidemiological methods and theories to explore issues such as adaptation to chronic disease, use of medications, transmission of infectious disease, and the health effects of rapid social change. In Chile, Trostle will seek to work with research teams engaged in studies of the health and social changes prompted by development projects such as intercity roads or other construction projects.

Trostle’s work in Chile will build on the 12 years of research that he has done in Ecuador that has examined how construction of a new two-lane paved road in a previously roadless border region in that coastal South American country has changed the residents’ social lives and disease transmission. In essence, Trostle, a member of Trinity’s faculty since 1998, has asked the question: “What happens in terms of social, environmental, and health changes when a road gets built in a place where no road existed before?”

Students Receive Fulbright Honors
Trinity reaped a bounty of Fulbright awards for the 2013-14 academic year, with three graduating seniors and three alumni being awarded fellowships to conduct research or teach. In addition, two others–another member of the Class of 2013 and an alumna–were chosen as alternates and could still receive the prestigious grant. The Fulbright Student Program is the flagship international education program sponsored by the U.S. government.

The six recipients are: Elizabeth DeWolf ’10, who will be conducting research in the United Kingdom; Lisa Esposito ’09, who will be teaching in Italy; Caitlin Gura ’13, who will be doing research and teaching in Austria; Jahn Jaramillo ’12, who will be teaching in Thailand; Peter Van Oot, Jr. ’13, who will be teaching in Indonesia; and Allison Windham ’13, who will be teaching in Turkey.

The alternates are: Jaclyn Arencibia ’13, a Questbridge Scholar who is seeking to conduct research in Spain; and Griha Singla ’09, who wants to do research for the European Union.

Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program operates in more than 155 countries worldwide.