With fall break just around the corner, this semester has flown by! Before our students and faculty head off for fall break, we are presenting our November student Spotlight. Samuel Bustamente is a junior working on his BS in Geography and his BA in Informational Technology in the Engineering program. Samuel was recently awarded an internship with the Guatemala GeoHazards IRES Program that is organized by the University of Missouri-Kansas City. This program is funded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) program. Through this program, Samuel will be able to do field research in Guatemala and lab research at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Participants are spilt into different research teams that study various topics (e.g., volcanology, paleoseismology, and surficial processes) in Guatemala. Then, they meet with faculty at the University of Missouri-Kansas City where they spend two weeks doing lab research and attending the Guatemala GeoHazards Poster Symposium. Samuel was interested in this opportunity because he wanted to gain experience in geoscience field research and more experience with geologic hazards.
As a dual major, his love for nature and strong drive to make positive impacts in the world, led him toward environmental research. He was drawn to UNT and the Department of Geography & the Environment because of our commitment to the environment; he was also attracted to the affordability that UNT offers. His passion led him to major in Geography's BS with a concentration in Environmental Studies and in the Information Technology program. He chose this combination because, "[he] get[s] to learn about the environment and how to design programs to help understand it better."
Samuel is originally from Frisco, Texas. As an undergrad he has enjoyed the freedom to explore different areas in geography. Dr. Feifei Pan, Samuel's Environmental Geology professor has helped a lot in this effort. One thing that has piqued Samuel's interest is the fact that Dr. Pan has helped him connect environmental research with his computational skills. After Samuel graduates, he plans to pursue environmental research using his IT knowledge to create programs that will assist in collecting and analyzing data to help people gain more knowledge about the world. He is not quite sure what field his research will lean toward, but currently he is most involved with geology.
One lesson that Samuel has learned while in college, is that one's experiences while in enrolled in higher education are determined by the individual. His experience in high school was one of order and opportunities not controlled by him. When he entered college, Samuel felt he could discover and make his own opportunities. He mentioned, "talking to professors and looking up ways to do what you love will take you a long way." Through his experiences he has learned you have to sometimes search for opportunities because they are out there waiting.
A few facts that Samuel shared about himself: he has a kitten named Kirby, he loves to snowboard, and Alaska is the most beautiful place he has ever been to during the summertime. Some interesting things around Denton that Samuel enjoys are New York Subhub (Cheba Hut is his second favorite sandwich shop), Thrift Giant, and according to Samuel, "There is a stretch of road on Oak [street] between Bonnie Brae and Avenue C that can be pretty spooky and cool at night." If you need a new sandwich shop, you might want to try out one of Samuel's recommendations! Grab a sandwich and enjoy this nice weather we are having in Denton, Texas.