Evan Coblentz

SYRACUSE — Far from the literal overnight cramming occurring when some students write research papers, Evan Coblentz spent an entire trimester researching and writing a paper about animal health problems existing in the dairy cattle industry in Uganda. His detailed work resulted in him being one of five students from Indiana selected to attend the Global Youth Institute hosted by the World Food Prize Foundation Oct. 16-19 in Des Moines, Iowa.

Evan, a senior at Wawasee High School and the son of Allen and Mindy Coblentz, wrote the research paper as part of an independent study class taught by Mariah Roberts. He was required to choose a country and address a specific agricultural related issue in that country. Evan said he chose Uganda because his church pastor has done extensive missionary work there.

He is the first Wawasee student to ever be selected for the Global Youth Institute.

He earned the right to attend the youth institute after competing at Purdue University in April and presenting his paper before a panel of judges. Mallory Bowers, a Tippecanoe Valley High School student, was one of the other four students selected.

Evan clarified the problem he addressed in his research paper had already been identified elsewhere, but his research was more focused. Much of his research was done on the internet and included reading United Nations type research papers, general articles and scholarly articles.

He found parasites is a common major problem among dairy cattle in Uganda. One potential solution is to crossbreed lines of dairy cattle and bring those into the country.

Another problem is because Uganda is landlocked, finding farmland and pasture land is quite difficult and most people are sharecroppers. Evan also found potential funding such as grants to help alleviate the problems.

At the Iowa youth institute, he will not only get an opportunity to present his research paper, but also attend conferences and hear internationally known speakers address problems in agriculture.

Evan said he was surprised he was one of the five students chosen to go to Iowa. “I felt honored that I was able to convey my point,” he said, “and I was excited to be able to further my passion.”

He sees the youth institute as a networking opportunity, too, and a chance to meet with world leaders “who share the same passions.”

A goal associated with writing the paper is to bring awareness to and vocalize the issues found in the dairy industry in Uganda. Evan added he is looking at the possibility of choosing veterinary medicine as a career.