Tag Archives: Education

Who Runs the World? Exploring Gender Diversity in the Forest Sector

The following article was written by Pipiet Larasatie and edited by Kristen Finch.

Pipiet Larasatie is a third year PhD student in Wood Science and Engineering Department, College of Forestry, at Oregon State University. Her friends and close colleagues describe her as “Ms. Social” and “Ms. Doing-All.”

And she is! Pipiet is currently involved with four research projects and has standing on four committees at the Department and College level (e.g. College of Forestry’s Diversity Equity Inclusion Committee). Additionally, she is a digital communications coordinator for the International Society of Wood Science and Technology. One of her initiatives is #WomenInWoodScience or a network for women who are associated with wood science.

Pipiet working in the Forest Sciences Dept. University of Helsinki in 2017.

As a woman and a first generation student in her male dominated family, Pipiet has a high passion on empowering young females. For this reason, Pipiet switched her research focus from wood centric to gender diversity in the forest sector.

So far, Pipiet’s research involved collaboration with folks at OSU (her advisor and a Master’s student), but also international collaboration with a professor and a Master’s student in University of Helsinki, Finland. During this part of the project, the team interviewed female executives in the global forest sector companies about gender aspects in the North American and Nordic industries. Some trends became apparent across interview responses. Their respondents agreed that the North American and Nordic forest sector is a historically male-oriented and male-dominated industry, which can lend itself to characteristics of a chauvinistic and masculine culture. This also was clear: to be successful in the male-dominated work setting, young females need a support on multiple levels e.g. good bosses/leaders, mentors, and networks. The interviewees also voiced that education is important when finding a niche in the workplace and for making young females more competitive in the job market. 

Pipiet with one of her mentees joining a faculty led summer course, “The Forest Sector in Alpine Europe.” Photo shows group at University of Primorska, Slovenia.

Tune in to KBVR Corvallis 88.7FM to hear our special segment with Pipiet at 7 pm on March 3, 2019. Pipiet present her research findings alongside pop songs from Beyoncé and Alicia Keys. Later, Pipiet will be accompanied by one of her mentees, Taylor Barnett, a third year undergraduate student studying Natural Resources at College of Forestry. Taylor will share her experience with mentorship programs at OSU and how these mentorship has aided her professional development.

Not a local listener? No sweat! Stream the show live or check out the podcast version of this special episode.

GROWing Healthy Kids and Communities

Physical activity has many benefits for health and wellness. Physical activity can help us control our weight, reduce our risk of diseases including many cancers and type 2 diabetes, help to strengthen our bones and muscles, and improve our mental health. Yet despite the benefits, many don’t get the recommended amount of physical activity. Our guest this week, Evan Hilberg from the College of Public Health and Human Sciences and the Department of Kinesiology, is investigating factors that influence physical activity of children in rural communities. Research focused on physical activity in children disproportionally centers around children in urban communities. Children in rural communities may have different limitations to physical activity. For example, rural children are more likely to take the bus to school instead of walking and commutes may take up to two hours each way. This leaves little time for physical activity outside of school hours. With his advisors, John Schuna and Kathy Gunter, Evan is analyzing data collected as part of the Generating Rural Options for Weight- Healthy Kids and Communities (GROW HKC) to better understand when children are active during the school day and factors that might limit their physical activity.

Recess and Wellness

Evan taking blood samples for cholesterol and glucose testing at a Community Wellness Fair.

One area of interest for Evan and the GROW HKC project are the variables that may predict changes in Body Mass Index (BMI) over a three-year period. Through this longitudinal study that involves over 1000 rural Oregon elementary school children, Evan will identify correlates of BMI change such as physical activity levels, age, sex, teacher, and school. Additionally, Evan is analyzing data that will hopefully provide more insight into specifically what times during the school day children are active. By obtaining a classroom schedule from teachers and measuring activity with accelerometers and pedometers, Evan can infer if children are physically active during recess, P.E., classroom activity breaks, or other times during the school day. Finally, Evan’s data will examine the reliability of different objective measures of physical activity, such as pedometers and accelerometers. The ability to compare outputs from different devices is limited by changes in device hardware and software, as well as the ways in which data is processed within those devices. The examination of these devices may inform procedure for future physical activity research for children and adults to help comparability across different devices and different studies.

A School of Thought

A clear understanding of the factors effecting physical activity in rural school children will aid in structuring the school day to maximize each child’s opportunity to be physically active. Data generated through GROW HKC my reveal patterns that younger children are more active during unstructured play during recess, whereas older children prefer sports-focused activity in P.E.. This type of research could inform recommendations for state-mandated physical activity at schools such that school day structure and physical activity opportunities are tailored to the diverse needs of kids in rural communities.

Full Circle

Evan grew up as an active kid and selected a college where he could play baseball. He landed at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon where his interest in Exercise Science grew through volunteering in community health outreach and research with his advisor, Janet Peterson. Evan learned that his education went beyond the classroom through his interactions with the community. Evan decided to pursue graduate school and earned a Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology from Eastern Washington University. During his Master’s, Evan gained more experience with community and public health research as an AmeriCorps employee with “Let’s Move, Cheney”, a local coalition inspired by Michelle Obama’s national campaign. Thereafter, Evan volunteered with the GROW HKC project, and applied to graduate school at Oregon State. Since beginning his doctoral studies with a concentration in physical activity and public health, Evan has completed a Master’s in Public Health in Biostatistics and maintains a full-time job as a Medical Policy Research Analyst with Cambia Health Solutions.

Tune in to 88.7 FM KBVR Corvallis this Sunday November, 12 at 7 pm to hear more about Evan’s research and background in Exercise Science. Click here to stream the show live.

You can download Evan’s iTunes Podcast Episode!

Evan at the California-Oregon border on a self-supported bike trip to San Francisco down the coast.