NMU Honors Program student and Wildcat football player Aaron Rochow researched the political and economic institutions in the neighboring African countries of Botswana and Zimbabwe to better understand their different development paths. He traveled to Botswana through a Lundin Summer Research Fellowship. Rochow and four other students will give presentations on their summer projects at an Oct. 25 event honoring donor Rich Lundin.
Rochow said he looked at the political and economic institutions through the lenses of political systems, land ownership and ease of doing business within each of the countries.
“My experience last summer centered around my internship in the political and economic section of the U.S. Embassy in Gaborone, Botswana,” he said. “There, I was able to participate in high-level meetings, write cables and gain valuable career experience on the front lines of American diplomacy. Building on my previous research trip to Harare, Zimbabwe, I used my time in Botswana to gain invaluable information through in-country travel, interviews and government document resources.”
On his 2017 trip to Harare, Rochow studied the impact of dollarization as an economic crisis recovery method in developing countries. He conducted interviews with local business owners, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, the Labor and Economic Development Research Institute of Zimbabwe and the University of Zimbabwe Department of Political Science to better understand the effects of adopting the U.S. dollar as the country’s currency.
“My research I’ve done here at Northern provides an excellent building block toward graduate school, as well as invaluable experience abroad to help me in the future,” said Rochow, who was mentored by former NMU faculty member Hanna Kassab. “My internship with the Department of State and my research are integral to my career aspirations, as I plan on joining the Foreign Service after graduate school. The Lundin Fellowship allowed me to finance an incredible overseas internship and do research for my project at the same time—an opportunity I would struggle to find elsewhere.”
In addition to his opportunities overseas, Roshow has been impacted by rewarding experiences in Marquette. He has joined his NMU football teammates in many volunteer activities, including reading to elementary school children, visiting the Jacobetti Home for Veterans and mentoring young students.
The NMU Honors Program is hosting the Lundin Summer Research Fellow presentations on Thursday, Oct. 25, in the Olson Library atrium. There will be heavy snacks at 5 p.m., presentations at 6 and a final wrap-up at 7 p.m. The campus