Demography-Engineering collab will focus on Nepal’s Chitwan Valley

ANN ARBOR — A new project to study the cumulative consequences of recurrent flooding is one of four initiatives to be supported by the 2024 Rural Life Program– a partnership of the Institute for Social Research and the College of Engineering to address the unique challenges and conditions of rural communities around the world.

The project, led by William Axinn and Dirgha Ghimire of the Population Studies Center and the Chitwan Valley Family study along with Sabine Loos of the College of Engineering, will integrate natural hazards engineering and social demography to study the longterm impacts of rural communities that routinely experience flooding.

The initiative will illuminate social impacts of climate change using long-term data to study population dynamics and the health effects of flooding in Nepal’s Chitwan Valley.

Each of the four projects selected for 2024 Rural Life Program grants will receive $150,000 over a two-year period.

“We were very pleased with the progress of the four projects selected for last year’s grants and are excited to continue this interdisciplinary partnership with the College of Engineering,” said ISR Director Kate Cagney. “Through this continued research, we hope we can offer new insight into the issues facing rural populations in addition to fostering effective, sustainable solutions.”

The other projects selected for grants will investigate accessibility to subsidized housing, energy inequality, and the effects of pollen on mental health.