Student Research
WPI has project centers around Latin America and the Caribbean where students conduct fieldwork to complete their Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) degree requirement. The centers in Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Puerto Rico are among the most active and dynamic within the IQP program. The project center in Panama offers both IQPs and senior year Major Qualify Projects (MQPs) in Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering. Paraguay provides an immersive experience where projects typically work on poverty reduction. The Brazil project center is built around MQP research on biofuels through the Chemistry and Biochemistry department.
The Humanities & Arts project center in Argentina allows students to complete their HUA requirement through study abroad in Buenos Aires.
Featured Projects
Student Presentations at 2023 New England Council of Latin American Studies Conference
“Medellín As a Global Model for Urban Development” by Agustín Alzate
“Al cielo, video juego entre espacios y conversaciones ecofeministas” by Jessica Elmhurst
“The Zoot Suits that Ripped Open Racial Tensions” by Jocelyn Hinchcliffe
“Reflejos de Buenos Aires” by Tom Kohen
“Gauchos, guerras y gobiernos: los factores únicos que crearon en Argentina una comunidad judía grande y resiliente” by Aaron Landry
“Unscrambling Latinx Identities” by Selina Tran
“Community Mapping in La Perla, Puerto Rico” by John Adams, Alexi Echevarria, Tai Le, and Humberto Torres
“Enhancing the Experience at the Hotel Cerrito” by Elidja Diakite
“Capturing Cañari Culture in Primok Supplemental Materials in Cañar, Ecuador” by Emma Bass, Russell Kam, Taina Quiñones, and Aunika Yasui
“Diablos Rojos: A Window into Panamanian Identity” by Sarah Saeed, Leah Kolb, Anna Callaghan, Sam Ollari, Micah Vargas
“Stormwater Management at Escuela Agrícola Cerrito, Paraguay“ by Alexandra Ballentine and Oliver Zaba
“Increasing Street-Level Accessibility in Cuenca, Ecuador” by Samantha Curtis, Gachau Kabuga, Cambria Pomeranz, Giovanni Ramirez, and Ilana Whittaker
“Hydraulic Modeling and Water Distribution Optimization in Corregimiento Kuna Nega, Panama City, Panama” by Bridget Gillis and Steven Defreitas
“Hecho en Monteverde: An Evaluation of An Improved Criteria for a Voluntary Sustainability Certification” by Sol Giesso and Patrick King
Student Presentations at 2022 New England Council of Latin American Studies Conference
“Fostering Community Through Alumni Outreach: Designing and Development of An Electronic Alumni Survey for the Latino Education Institute” by Melanie Castillo, Nelson Pires, & Aiden Wech, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
“La Goyco Community Center” by Nicholas Chantre & Christian Stilwagen
“Help the Soup Kitchen “Go Green”: Creating Replacements for Single-Use Plastics” by Lali Berelashivli
“La inmigracion a Argentina y como ha afectado al pais hoy” by Ava Dickman
“Argen-technologia” by Sophia Woodward
“Understanding the True Gender Equity Gap for Voces Vitales Costa Rica” by Emily Giancola & Gianna Viele
“Monteverde Wholefoods Women’s Empowerment Model” by Mackenzie Damon & Dayna Tang
Student Presentations at 2021 New England Council of Latin American Studies Conference
“Utilizing Technology to Promote Food Sovereignty in Cuenca, Ecuador” by Tyler Looney, Allison Spratt, Eliza Smith, Alejandro Gerov Armas
“Developing a Virtual Tour for the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve” by Saniya Syeda, Jules Cazaubiel, Andreas Akeson, and Evan Andrzejewski
“A Holistic Land Acquisition Process for the Expansion of El Yunque National Forest” by Justin Riley, Sarah Piela, Calvin Thomas, Isabella Ferrari Carrubba
“Developing Strategies to Increase the Usage of Evidence-Based Practice in Cuenca, Ecuador” by Silvana Reid, Margaret Richins, Alexandra Scarlati, and Jordan Wynn
“Poverty Stoplight in Comisiones Vecinales” by Maya Flores, Hannah Gelman, Dominick Gravante and Nichole Leveille
“An Analysis of Centro de Acopio de Reciclables in Ciudad del Saber, Panama” by John Hoang Do, Xavier Curney, Katherine Pawlak