{"id":24638,"date":"2026-06-17T20:19:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T20:19:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/06\/17\/science-will-meet-humanity-in-k-students-mongolia-summer-kalamazoo-college\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T20:19:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T20:19:04","slug":"science-will-meet-humanity-in-k-students-mongolia-summer-kalamazoo-college","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/06\/17\/science-will-meet-humanity-in-k-students-mongolia-summer-kalamazoo-college\/","title":{"rendered":"Science Will Meet Humanity in K Student\u2019s Mongolia Summer – Kalamazoo College"},"content":{"rendered":"

The classic back-to-school essay prompt asks students to describe what they did during summer vacation. When Anar Bayanmunkh \u201928 returns to Kalamazoo College this fall, she\u2019ll have quite a story to tell after conducting bioinformatics research at the National University of Mongolia<\/a>, leading a youth peace walk through the Mongolian countryside, and exploring how science, culture and community can shape her future career.\u00a0
In July, Anar will go home to Mongolia to complete an internship in a bioinformatics laboratory, an experience supported by a stipend from the College\u2019s Center for Career and Professional Development<\/a> (CCPD). She will also lead a Davis Projects for Peace initiative that encourages young people to reconnect with themselves, nature and their cultural heritage through a technology-free walking retreat.\u00a0
Together, the experiences reflect her goal of bridging science and human connection. The internship represents a key step in her growing interest in biology<\/a> and neuroscience<\/a>, fields she discovered after arriving at K.\u00a0
\u201cAs I started taking biology courses, I realized how interesting the field is,\u201d she said. \u201cEven when classes were difficult, I felt like this was something I wanted to keep pursuing.\u201d 
Seeking hands-on experience, Anar began searching for a summer internship. Through a connection provided by her grandmother, she reached a professor at the National University of Mongolia who put her in touch with a bioinformatics researcher, Associate Professor Mijiddorj Batsaikhan, whose work aligns with her interests. 
The faculty member welcomed Anar into the lab and offered to tailor the experience to her interests in bioinformatics and computational neuroscience. Anar\u2019s work will involve learning and applying bioinformatics approaches, particularly RNA-sequencing analysis, to understand biological systems through computational methods. 
\u201cI\u2019m hoping to gain hands-on experience with analyzing biological data, understanding how researchers use computational tools to study gene expression, and learn more about how bioinformatics can be applied to questions in biology and neuroscience,\u201d Anar said. \u201cIf possible, I\u2019m also interested in exploring the opportunity to develop a small independent research question\/project during my time in the lab.\u201d 
The CCPD\u2019s internship stipend program supports students who pursue unpaid internships. Anar received a $5,000 stipend to help cover expenses while she gains professional experience in Mongolia. The funding is one example of the support she has received from the CCPD since arriving at K. 
\u201cThey helped with my resume, found opportunities for me and made this internship possible,\u201d she said. \u201cIt has opened so many doors for me.\u201d 
While in Mongolia, Anar will also lead Walking Back to Ourselves: A Youth Peace Walk, a personal project funded through the Davis Projects for Peace program. The program allows students at partner institutions, including K, to design their own grassroots plans for peace that they implement anywhere in the world. About 100 projects a year are selected from proposals at 85 campuses for the $10,000 grants. 
Anar\u2019s initiative will bring together 15 to 20 young adults from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, for a seven- to 10-day walking and reflection retreat in Mongolia\u2019s Zavkhan Province. Participants will leave behind phones and electronic devices while walking through the countryside, living in tents, engaging with local nomadic families and participating in guided reflection and discussion activities. Anar developed the project in response to what she sees as growing stress, digital dependence and emotional isolation among young people in Mongolia. 
\u201cMy definition of peace begins within the individual,\u201d she wrote in her proposal. \u201cA society cannot be truly peaceful if its people are disconnected from themselves.\u201d 
Working in partnership with the nonprofit organization Nomiin Tsenher Tig, which has organized walking journeys throughout Mongolia since 2013, Anar hopes participants will develop stronger emotional awareness, deeper cultural connections and a renewed sense of community. 
The project also reflects Anar\u2019s own experiences navigating life between traditional Mongolian culture and the modern world. 
\u201cFor the past five years, I have personally experienced the emotional disconnection that many young Mongolians feel in modern life,\u201d she wrote. \u201cThis project reflects my desire to transform that experience into something meaningful for others.\u201d 
Anar credits K faculty and staff members, including her academic advisor, Jessica Fowle \u201900\u2014who is K\u2019s director of health careers, fellowships and undergraduate research\u2014for encouraging her ambitions and helping her pursue opportunities that connect her academic interests with meaningful work.  
“When I go there, I’ll bring some American college student perspective to Mongolia,” she said. “And when I come back, I’ll be bringing hands-on experience in a bioinformatics lab from Mongolia. I don’t think a lot of people have that kind of opportunity.” 
Anar describes herself as someone who moves between worlds\u2014traditional and modern, Mongolian and American, scientific and humanistic\u2014and she sees her summer as a chance to deepen that role. She also hopes the summer helps her narrow down the possibilities for her future direction.  
\u201cThis will help me narrow down what I\u2019m interested in and decide whether I want to go deeper into that pathway,\u201d she said. \u201cKalamazoo College gives you many opportunities to explore and helps you figure out what you want to do. Maybe I won\u2019t like the internship. Maybe after going through it, I’ll think, \u2018This is not what I want to do.\u2019 Or maybe I’ll want to go deeper in that pathway. Either way, I’ll know more about myself.\u201d 
Kalamazoo College
\t\t\t\t1200 Academy Street
\t\t\t\tKalamazoo, Michigan
\t\t\t\t49006-3295
\t\t\t\tUSA
Information 269.337.7000
\t\t\t\t \tAdmission 800.253.3602
Contact List<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tDirectories<\/a>
\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tSearch this site<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tSitemap<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tMap and Directions<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tAcademic Calendars<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\t Employment<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tDepartments and Programs<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tLibrary<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tRegistrar<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tBookstore<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tFor Parents<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tCrisis Response<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tNondiscrimination Policy<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\t Title IX<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\t Bias Reporting<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tConsumer Information<\/a>
\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tWeb Accessibility Policy<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tPrivacy Policy<\/a>
\t\t\t\t\tOfficial Disclaimer<\/a> \t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The classic back-to-school essay prompt asks students to describe what they did during summer vacation. When Anar Bayanmunkh \u201928 returns to Kalamazoo College this fall, she\u2019ll have quite a story to tell after conducting bioinformatics research at the National University of Mongolia, leading a youth peace walk through the Mongolian countryside, and exploring how science, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24638\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}