Students attend SfAA

CSB+SJU students traveled to Portland, Oregon, to participate in the 85th annual Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) meeting. The conference was held Friday through Tuesday and focused on revitalizing applied anthropology.

CSB+SJU students presented posters on a variety of topics, including the effects of climate anxiety on women across cultures and the accommodation of dietary restrictions in college dining halls. Students also attended panel discussions and presentations by scholars and scientists on applied anthropology topics.

“There was so much different research that was being presented there. From healthcare to environmental stuff, just anything” said Brett Lund, a SJU sophomore who attended the conference.

“You had professors and academics from other fields presenting their research, so we picked out presentations that were interesting to us. One that I went to was about healthcare and labor camps in North Korea,” said Rachel Erben, a CSB senior and conference attendee.

The SfAA annual conference gives scholars, social scientists and students the chance to share their work and brainstorm for future research.

“The cool thing about it is that it’s a conference for anthropologists both inside and outside of academia doing applied work,” said Ellen Block, sociology professor and conference attendee and liaison.

According to Block, students began attending the SfAA conference in 2018.

“Dr. Megan Sheehan and I both do a lot of research with our students, both inside our classes and in our own research projects. So, we just thought ‘they’ve got this research, this is a really friendly conference for students and it’s a great opportunity to give students a professional experience’ so we just started,” Block said.

Block has taken 5-10 students every year since 2018. Conference locations vary each year. Next year’s conference will be held in Albuquerque, N.M.

“The students have to write an abstract that is due in October, usually on Halloween. They find out in December if they get accepted to the conference. Then, we work from January up to the week before we go to the conference on things like creating poster drafts and doing practice sessions,” Block said.

CSB+SJU students mingled among a crowd mainly comprised of graduate students and PhD students while at the conference.

The SfAA conference gives undergraduate students an opportunity to present their research in a professional setting, an opportunity Block said she did not have until well into her graduate studies.

“It’s one of my favorite parts of my job, to take these students to this conference; it’s super fun,” Block said.

Presenting at a professional conference was a must-do for Erben.

“I thought that would be a really great opportunity to make sure I presented at a conference before I graduated from school,” Erben said.

In addition to presenting posters and attending presentations, students had the opportunity to explore the city of Portland. Among the highlights of Portland for Brett Lund was a trip to the largest independent bookstore in the world, Powell’s Books; a group hike; and a dining excursion at Voodoo Doughnuts.