Economics major investigates ecotourism through gender-equity lens

A 2023 TREK trip to Costa Rica with faculty and students from The College of Wooster inspired economics major Trinity Harmon ’24 to investigate the impacts of ecotourism on women’s empowerment and gender equity in developing local economies. The Costa Rican experience, led by Brooke Krause, associate professor and chair of economics and business economics, and Laura Sirot, professor and co-chair of biology, opened Harmon’s eyes to the economic consequences of increasing ecotourism in Latin American regions of the world. 

“I wanted to look into this specific subset of tourism because it is supposed to be more positive and align with some of the United Nation’s sustainable development goals,” Harmon said.

She gathered open-access data for some Latin American countries from the World Bank and UN Sustainable Development Indicator and analyzed corresponding changes to relevant indicators of female economic empowerment resulting from an increase in ecotourism. 

Harmon, who was captain and starting Libero on the Wooster volleyball team, discovered “There is no aspect of ecotourism that intentionally addresses gender equity within the industry,” she said. 

Q: What excites you about your I.S.? 

Harmon: What excites me most now is what was most intimidating at the start of the project—that there is not much information directly related to ecotourism within the field of economics. After my initial research, it became clear that I was taking on a truly original topic.  

Q: How did Wooster prepare you for designing your project? 

Harmon: Starting with the first-year seminar courses that have a special focus on I.S., the entire major curriculum is carefully designed to prepare us for the Independent Study project. The faculty and the College have you thinking about your I.S. as soon as you walk in the door as a freshman. 

Support from faculty mentors, such as Colin Davison, assistant professor of economics and business economics (left), and Krause (right), was instrumental as Harmon completed her I.S.

Q: In what ways has your relationship with you I.S. mentor supported you throughout this process? 

Harmon: Dr. Brooke Krause taught me so much beyond the basics of economic theory and research. She set such a great example for what it means to be a hard worker, a careful thinker, and a present human being. Her inherent curiosity and ability to ask many questions were incredible assets as my advisor. 

Q: What has I.S. taught you? 

Harmon: Now that my project is complete, I can look back and feel as though I made a genuine contribution in creating a starting point for others interested in the economics of tourism and gender that I can be proud of. Realizing I could create something new changed my mindset and became the most valuable part of the I.S. process. I will take that mindset with me as I pursue a Master of Business Analytics & Intelligence at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. 

Harmon was accepted into Case Western Reserve’s Weatherhead School of Management through a partnership with The College of Wooster. The agreement enables eligible Wooster students to gain early admission into one of four master’s degree programs and earn a minimum $10,000 scholarship toward tuition fees for the program with the potential to receive an additional merit-based scholarship award. 

Posted in Independent Study on June 20, 2024.