I am excited to be returning to Mongolia this summer with support from the UC Davis College of Biological Sciences’ Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP), which supports a small cohort of undergraduate researchers in the life sciences, providing funding, mentorship, and presentation experience. As part of the summer 2026 SURP cohort and a researcher in the Zerbe Lab, I will work with Darhad Valley park rangers and Round River’s Chris Smith and Badmaa Dovchin, as well as foster new connections with researchers at the Molecular Cellular Biophysics Lab at the National University of Mongolia, to continue a project I began as a student on the Round River Mongolia program.
I was originally motivated to develop this project during the Mongolia Summer 2025 program after hearing Darhad elders talk about the importance of Vansemberuu and how they wished western science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) could be brought together to study it. Vansemberuu is a medicinally and culturally significant plant found in the Darhad Valley. Our research on Vansemberuu will combine conservation biology, metabolomics, and ethnobotanical approaches to develop an understanding of the medicinal compounds produced by the plant. Our ultimate goal is to share the knowledge we gain from this project with the broader Darhad community in order to unite western science and TEK, and engage younger generations about Vansemberuu.
Choosing to join Round River as a student on the Mongolia 2025 summer program really was one of the best decisions I’ve made in college. I’m so thankful to have had such incredible experiences and to have made lasting friendships. Beyond that, my time in Mongolia also inspired me to think outside the box when it comes to my future career. As a double major in the humanities and STEM, I wholeheartedly believe in the power of interdisciplinary research to solve global challenges, and my time with Round River has shown me that I’m not alone in this.
The real-world impact and importance of this research — and Chris and Badmaa! — have inspired me to keep going, and to be committed to making it a reality even when it has felt impossible (and trust me, it has!). But once you’ve sprinted down a mountain in Mongolia in the middle of a lightning storm, you realize that “impossible” is pretty subjective.
Although it’s certainly going to be a different experience this time around, I’m excited to return to Mongolia this summer and work on a project that gives back to the Darhad community!