Academics

Graduate student Bipana Paudel Timilsena receives International Research Award

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Bipana Paudel Timilsena, a doctoral student in entomology with a dual title in international agriculture and development, received the Graduate Student International Research Award. The purpose of the award is to promote and support international research and scholarship by graduate students that has the potential for global impact.

Paudel Timilsena is conducting research involving Fall Armyworm — or FAW — which is a crop pest native to the Americas that has invaded and spread throughout sub-Saharan Africa during the last two years.

Paudel Timilsena is researching how variation in farmers’ knowledge and perception of the impact of FAW on household food insecurity will influence their monitoring and management practices.

Paudel Timilsena’s project — to be carried out in Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi — will also assess the capacity of farmers to contribute to FAW monitoring efforts through the use of pheromone traps and field scouting.

Paudel Timilsena will conduct household surveys, focus group discussions and field observations, with the assistance of field extension workers from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Kenya.

The results of Paudel Timilsena’s research will aid farmers in the sustainable management of FAW, support trainers and extension workers in planning appropriate training strategies, and help industries develop tools that meet the needs of the farmers.

Paudel Timilsena was honored during the annual Graduate Student Awards Luncheon held on April 11 at the Nittany Lion Inn.

Last Updated April 12, 2019