By applying her passions for sustainability in agriculture to research, rising senior Food and Resource Economics undergraduate Jimena Morales placed second in the student paper competition at the annual Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) meeting with her paper, “Exploring the Impact of Sustainability Information on Consumer Preferences for Dairy Milk: The Case of Seaweed Feed Additives.”
Morales chose her topic based on a desire to mitigate greenhouse gases emitted by cows in the dairy industry.
“I first heard about this seaweed from a friend who interned on a project studying how to harvest it, which made me wonder if it could actually be implemented at scale,” Morales said. “But before producers can adopt it, we need to know if consumers are willing to pay a premium, so that’s what I decided to explore.”
FRE faculty members Dr. John Lai and Dr. Bachir Kassas, as well as Dr. Meri Hambaryan, who graduated from the FRE Department’s Ph.D. program this summer, advised Morales while she was working on the paper.
“They were very welcoming and met me where I was, skill-wise, “Morales said. “They were more than willing to teach anything I didn’t know in a way that made it approachable. It was clear they all genuinely care about research, teaching, and helping students grow.”
The competition judged students on both their paper submission and their oral presentation during the AAEA annual meeting.
Morales was also co-captain of the Gator NAMA team, which made it to the semifinals in this year’s student marketing competition. She was able to apply her skills in public presentation from NAMA. She also utilized the skills in Data Analytics and coding using Stata developed through FRE coursework and her internship experiences.
“Both skill sets will be incredibly useful in my future career,” Morales said. “And since my research was about consumer demand and marketing, it tied right into what we study in agricultural economics.”
According to Morales, AAEA was an opportunity not only to showcase her own research, but to clarify her career intentions. It allowed her to learn more about applied economics research in a warm and welcoming environment.
“Honestly, I came in unsure if I wanted to go to grad school,” Morales said. “However, after attending some of the conference sessions that interested me, I fell in love with the idea of doing research, especially in behavioral economics. It made me realize that I really enjoy this kind of work, and now I feel confident that I want to pursue grad school, maybe even a PhD.”
Morales recommends her fellow Food and Resource Economics undergraduate students get involved early and often to take full advantage of the opportunities available to attend the AAEA annual meeting.
“Whether it’s quiz bowl, the spreadsheet competition, or the paper competition, the conference is a great place to connect with other schools, meet professors, and learn about different fields you might want to explore,” Morales said.
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