Undergraduate Division

Wharton Senior Discovers New Path to Happiness During Research Project in Bhutan

Winning a $6,000 research grant to study Gross National Happiness (GNH) in Bhutan last summer was a “thrilling” achievement for Wharton senior Alejandro Adler, but actually getting access into the tiny nation turned out to be a pretty big accomplishment as well.

Adler, who won the grant from the Wharton International Research Experience (WIRE), explains that Bhutan is a tiny country in the Himalayas that is pioneering the alternative approach to measuring progress called Gross National Happiness.  GNH measures things like healthcare, psychological well being, education, environmental sustainability, community vitality, and governance. When he applied for the grant, his goal was to go to the source of where GNH began to see how it differs from other countries in terms of institutions and policies.

The challenge was that Bhutan is in an incredibly remote location, which is accessible by just one airline, and tourists must pay $200 a day to visit. However, after “a million phone calls and emails,” Adler found a Bhutanese resident to sponsor his trip and he received permission to visit the country without having to pay the tourism fee. The catch was that he could only stay for two weeks in July.

The timing actually worked out pretty well since Adler, who is from Mexico City, could then spend the rest of his summer in Bangkok interning for the GNH Movement Project under the Sathirakoses-Nagapradipa Foundation, a network committed to social justice. During his internship, he helped with grant proposals and tried to learn as much as possible about GNH.

When it was finally time to head to Bhutan, he flew via a small town in India to Bhutan’s capital city, Thimphu. “I was in the middle of these monstrous Himalayan Mountains and the plane was swerving around and finally I saw this tiny landing strip ahead,” recalls Adler. “It turned out to be the farthest away place I’ve ever been not only geographically, but also culturally and spiritually. Everything was different from the dress and architecture to the pace of life.” 

He spent the first 10 days in the capital interviewing government officials and staff at the Center for Bhutan Studies, which generates the country’s GNH Index, and the GNH Commission, which is the branch of government that uses the Index to construct policies that promote GNH. During that time, he got “really lucky” and was able to talk to both the president and director of the Center for Bhutan Studies as well as the secretary of the GNH Commission.
 
After conducting as many interviews as possible in the city, he and a translator headed into rural Bhutan to get a feeling for how GNH affects the lives of typical Bhutanese citizens. “My conclusion from the time I spent there was that Bhutan is a living example of a country that has chosen to embrace an alternative definition of progress and has really constructed institutions and policies around that definition,” he says, noting that his paper was published by the Center for Bhutan Studies.

Now that he’s back for his final year at Wharton, Adler says last summer was the most memorable experience of his undergraduate years. “It helped illuminate for me how much I enjoy research and want to dedicate my life to socially engaged research. After this, I want to work for an organization like the World Bank and then come back to get my Ph.D. in development economics to do research that will have a positive impact in the world,” he says. Adler adds, “I’m so glad I had the opportunity to go to Bhutan. It really opened up a new avenue of business for me where you can do well and do good at the same time.”

 
 
To read Adler’s paper on GNH, go to: http://www.grossnationalhappiness.com/OtherArticles/GNHPaperbyAlejandro.pdf

From Dating to Fire Safety: Wharton Freshman Dishes about Campus Life in Seventeen Magazine Blog

 
When Katie heard about Seventeen’s Freshman 15 project in which the magazine follows 15 freshmen throughout their first year of college, she thought it sounded pretty cool.  So she began the application process, sending in her bio, making a video, and submitting writing samples. Her efforts paid off when she was one of the 15 girls picked out of 5,000 applicants. Now, you can find her in Seventeen every month, read her weekly blogs, and watch video diaries about her new life at Penn.

When it comes to blog topics, just about anything is fair game. Recent posts have covered everything from moving to Philadelphia to staying fit and dating. Her favorite part of the Seventeen project so far is taking pictures. “I usually wouldn’t be so active in taking pictures of my life, but it will be something to remember my freshman year by. And I love getting responses from readers too. It’s been a lot of fun,” says Long, who is from Princeton, N.J.

Another highlight of her freshman experience, she says, is her Management 100 (otherwise known as Leadership and Communication in Groups) project, which is to create a presentation on fire safety for elementary school students in West Philadelphia in partnership with the Red Cross. “We’re preparing for the presentations now and will start to do the outreach to kids next month. We are also fundraising and creating a website — things that go beyond the course expectations,” says Long.

The team, which calls itself “Stop, Drop and Roll,” gets together twice a week to work on the Red Cross project. They’ve already organized a bake sale to raise money for superhero costumes to wear in their school presentations and are planning a speed-dating event to raise even more money for the organization.

Her project team, which includes “two football guys, a guy from Australia, West Coast kids, and East Coast kids” may seem like an unlikely group of friends, but they’ve all become pretty close as a result of the project, she says. “Now, I hang out with them, study with them, and get together a lot outside of class.”

While they are still in the middle of the project, Long says that she’s already learned some important lessons about leadership from the experience. “In the beginning, everyone wanted to take control, but I learned that if you are on a team then you need to work together because it’s more about cooperation and learning how to compromise,” she says.

Long describes the Management 100 course as very unique. “If you compare it to what is offered at other Ivies, you won’t find anything like this course. You really learn a lot about real life because not only do you work on a real project, but it teaches you how to work with others and improve your interpersonal skills.”

As for the overall experience at Wharton, she says she’s having a great time. “The business courses are practical, but at the same time I can still pursue liberal arts. I’m thinking of minoring in English in Penn’s College of Arts & Sciences,” she says, adding that she went to a liberal arts boarding school prior to coming to Wharton.

While she’s still thinking about her minor, Long says that she’s pretty sure her Wharton concentrations will be finance and entrepreneurship. In high school, she started a fashion magazine called Haute, which got seed money and became profitable within two years. “If I start a business, fashion is not a bad place to start and Wharton is a great place to be,” says Long.

Wharton Leadership Ventures: Students Learn by Rappelling, Spelunking , Climbing, and Trekking

Wharton junior Xenia Kolesnikov headed to Mexico recently, but there was no time spent on beaches. Instead, it was on the Wharton Leadership Venture to Monterrey. As chair of the Student Advisory Board of the Undergraduate Leadership Ventures, Kolesnikov volunteered to serve as the coordinator of the Mexico trip, working all semester to plan the week of leadership challenges, camping, and even a social impact project. “I had done this before so through these experiences, I realized that while I like fulfilling challenges, I also like planning for them.”

Kolesnikov, an international student who has lived in Russia, Ecuador, and Chile, really likes hiking and climbing, and the Leadership Ventures help connect the outdoor challenges with other aspects of life to find ways to apply the lessons. “One of the activities in Monterrey was setting a goal for ourselves in the next two years and then making a plan for how we want to accomplish it. I decided my goal is to organize a trip before I graduate to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro.”

The leadership challenges ranged from exploring caves and climbing ropes courses to hiking in the mountains. A highlight of the week was a night spent spelunking. “We left camp at 6:00 p.m. and spent two hours going down into the cave. Some sections were as big as a room, but in others you could barely fit. Once we got to the bottom, we turned out our lights for five minutes to feel the darkness and reflect on the experience. Until you are in a situation like that, you have no idea what darkness is!” says Kolesnikov.

The social impact project involved consulting for a women-owned nonprofit business that makes and sells candy. Everyone developed ways to improve marketing materials and simplify the accounting system, presenting suggestions at the end of the trip. “I loved being able to really help a business and know that we provided them with some valuable marketing tools!”

 “You learn about leadership, communication, and teamwork in the classroom, but the Leadership Ventures are another way to experience those lessons and discover more about yourself and what you are good at. “

Read more about the Wharton Leadership Ventures.

See more on the Wharton Leadership Ventures on Youtube.

Bring it On! Student Marketing Group Ramps Up for New Orleans Case Competition

Bring it on! This is how Adela Mou and her teammates approached the American Marketing Association’s (AMA) annual undergrad case competition in New Orleans. Part of the Marketing Undergraduate Students Establishment (MUSE), Mou’s team knew the competition would be intense, but they set their sights high on first place.

“Penn’s MUSE team has never lost, so every year the competition gets ramped up. We needed to bring it to the next level,” she says. That strategy worked and they recently continued Penn’s four-year winning streak, placing first at the competition for their presentation of a marketing plan for Kodak’s next generation photo sharing site.

Mou, who was a co-captain of the case competition team and served on the MUSE board for three years, says that her involvement with the group has been an important part of her Wharton experience. “In the beginning of your time at Wharton, it’s about learning the basics and getting your feet wet in all areas of business. After that, it’s about finding what you like to do and then finding ways to improve yourself in that field. MUSE has helped me do that tremendously,” she says.

MUSE even helped develop her leadership skills. As a MUSE vice president, Mou was in charge of organizing a conference for students from all over the country interested in marketing. The event featured speakers, mini case competitions, and sessions on practical topics like interview skills.

Mou adds that in addition to conferences and case competitions, MUSE also offers hands-on opportunities like job shadowing and consulting projects. On the social side, the group organizes events like paintball, rock climbing, and -- for those brave enough -- a sky diving trip.

“I absolutely recommend this group. If you are interested in marketing, you should check out MUSE,” says Mou.

Read more on MUSE and the  2009 AMA Case Competition. 

Read more on Undergraduate Student Clubs and Activities.