Anna Ahlstrom, Geology and Geophysics

If you get to know Anna, you’ll find that this Charlotte, North Carolina, native is interested in more than just earth sciences. Anna has a minor in Appalachian Music, plays both the banjo and guitar, and has taken her turn skydiving, cliff-diving, and kayaking. But Anna’s most valuable asset is likely her interest in Earth structures.

After graduating from Appalachian State University with a degree in geology, Anna came to Texas A&M to study under Rick Giardino, a professor in the University’s geology and geophysics department. Dr. Giardino’s research focus in Earth processes and the structural study of landforms matched Anna’s interests, making for a smooth transition in an unfamiliar setting.

"Dr. Giardino is a great advisor. He gives us freedom in our research pursuits, but offers guidance when we need it,” Anna remarked. “It’s the ideal situation.”

As an undergraduate, Anna learned how much of an impact educators like Dr. Giardino can have on their students. While a sophomore at Appalachian State, it was an exceptional lab instructor that led Anna to change her major from recreation management to geology. Now, Anna says she enjoys the opportunity to pay this particular favor forward.

“I’ve really enjoyed being a teaching assistant, even though I didn’t know what to expect. I teach Geology 101 labs and had great classes my first semester,” Anna said of her experience. “I enjoy teaching so much and explaining geology to them. I never thought I would want to be a professor, but after teaching, maybe, one day.”

When Anna isn’t leading one of her three labs, she is likely to be found pursuing her own educational interests. She wants an education that she can apply in a service-centered life, and has found a field that combines her academic interest in geology with her long-term goals in hazard prevention.

In the short run, Anna will be conducting research on a landslide in Telluride, Colo. In the long run, she may end up shielding communities and saving lives.

“With the earthquake in Haiti, half of the devastation was caused by landslides because of all the deforestation,” Anna reflected, “so there are problems that can be prevented with the proper measures.”

An altruistic outlook
Anna’s desire to help those in need—whether through preventative measures in geology or through education and empowerment —is a recurring theme in her life.

In the summer of 2008, she traveled to southwest Sudan with the nonprofit organization Why The Woods. Civil war has plagued the country since the 1950s, and the violence has crippled the economy and oppressed development. The country lacks basic infrastructure, such as paved roads and communications lines, and the people are vulnerable to preventable diseases because of water-borne pathogens.

Anna joined other workers in the village of Wadupe, 100 miles from the city of Yei and the nearest electrical outlet. The group drilled freshwater wells, instructed the local children in healthy living, and began an education program that the organization believes will have a lasting impact.

“Like it or not, we can build as many things as we want, and the next civil war comes and it will all be destroyed; and we can drill all the wells we want, and they will all be destroyed or filled,” Anna said. “But if we can educate the people, then that is something that can’t be taken away.”

For eight weeks, Anna lived among the Sudanese. She called a mud-hut “home,” slept under a mosquito net, and joined the local people in their daily lives. Her diet consisted mostly of vegetables, but there was the occasional delicacy of meat: goat brain and roasted termites, which she compared to beef jerky.

But rest easy. Before the termites were roasted, their wings were removed. “Thank goodness,” Anna said. “That would be gross.”

World traveler
Anna’s love of traveling and new cultures may have originated in Sudan, but it spread well beyond Sudanese borders.

Before completing her undergraduate degree, Anna decided to take a geological field-class to satisfy a graduation requirement. A minor detail about the South Dakota School of Mines course was its location: Taskesti, Turkey.

The course began in June, six weeks after the spring semester finished, so Anna and a friend decided to fill their break with an adventure. The two booked one-way flights for Berlin.

“When we left the United States, we had a hostel booked in Germany for three nights,” Anna said. “And that was it.”

The two wandered through Europe, experiencing France, Austria, Switzerland (where they gave skydiving a chance), Spain and Italy, before arriving in Istanbul, Turkey, just in time to meet their new professor and begin the course.

The adventure didn’t end in Istanbul. Anna and her classmates spent their days with GPS devices mapping the Turkish countryside. They traversed forests, deserts, and mountains, learning the equipment and skills of a geoscientist.

“We were given a blank topographic map every week and told to map a region. So we would go and find out what rocks were where and how they were dipping and striking. By the end of it, we would have a complete geologic map and a five-page report about what was going on in the region millions of years ago,” Anna recalled. “It was hard work, but really rewarding.”

During their evenings, Anna and her friends would often join the hospitable Turkish community for tea or dinner or dancing. Using an English-Turkish dictionary to bridge the linguistic divide, the nights typically involved more gesturing (and laughter) than meaningful discussion.

Looking back at the last several years, one thing is for certain. Wherever she was­—serving in Sudan, modeling natural disasters in College Station, freefalling over Switzerland, or mapping in Turkey—it was hardly ever just another day for Anna Ahlstrom.

Story by Robert Carpenter