Charlotte Vierling

Hemp’s Budding Economic and Environmental Viability: A Cost-Benefit Analysis
Charlotte Vierling, Economics and Environmental Studies, 2024
Thesis advisors: Professors Hongxing Liu, Ernest Nkansah-Dwamena, and Ben Cohen

How and when did you select your advisor and the thesis committee members?
I would suggest working with advisors that you are already familiar with and, clearly, someone who has expertise in your subject matter. None of my advisors were experts on my topic at all, but I appreciated having a team of mentors with diverse skillsets and philosophies. So, I selected my primary Economics advisor just by our established relationship/her expertise and my primary Environmental Studies advisor for similar reasons. The third reader can have a lot more flexibility, so I picked this professor for my committee because I welcomed another STEM perspective and liked his writing style.

When did you start thinking about your thesis? How did you select your topic? How did you develop your research question?
The summer before senior year I began to reconsider if I just wanted to do a Capstone. I knew that I could only write a paper so grand on something that I was genuinely interested to learn more about and could accomplish. I began to look through past topics I’ve done projects on and think of scattered areas I wanted to delve into: water quality, waste, agriculture, and energy. When I thought of a unique umbrella question that addressed both Economics and the Environment, I immediately remembered a book chapter on hemp. I formulated my question after doing a lot of preliminary research on the different facets of production and compared my work to past students and current peers. My question changed significantly twice to make it a bit broader, but I’m happy with the changes.

Did your advisor explain the structure of a thesis project to you?
I reviewed past student papers to get a gauge on formatting, page length, and chapter titles, but I had a bit more flexibility because both departments had different expectations.

Did you have to do a literature review? Had you ever done one before?
Yes, I have done them a few times and had to do one for my thesis. I wasn’t sure sometimes on if my content was better suited for an introduction, background, or literature review, so I had some lingering questions about formatting. I also wasn’t all too sure about the best length for one, but other papers helped me get a better understanding.

Do you remember receiving correspondence from the library about your honors thesis?
Yes, I worked with a fantastic research librarian and remember the writing workshop sessions!

What did you find most challenging about your thesis project?
Conceptualizing what the finished project would look like, working with my perfectionism, and conducting the data analysis/modeling mostly on my own.

What did you find most rewarding about your thesis project?
Definitely being accepted for and getting to present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research in Long Beach with a team of other motivated classmates! The moments after the defense were incredible as well.

What assistance did your advisor/department offer you throughout the course of the year?
The advisors were always really communicative and were great at feedback. I honestly did a lot of the writing and modeling on my own and went back to them after it was completed, so a great amount of my thesis was never read by my advisors before it was submitted at the end. This is different to a lot of my peers whose advisors read every single chapter on a timeline and gave structured feedback. I liked how mine worked out because I do tend to work better independently and ask for help/seek feedback after, but it depends on the advisors and your topic. The Environmental Studies department hosted events I talked at which helped me get used to presenting my research, and the Economics department kindly sponsored my visit to Cornell University for feedback.

Did you meet with librarians in the course of conducting your research? How many times and at what stages of your research?
I met with a research librarian once in the Fall semester, just before I changed my thesis question. Her feedback was incredibly helpful, but I realized how much better the project could be were I to change the direct focus.

What other kind of support did you rely on throughout the year to accomplish your thesis (parents, friends, etc.)?
I had another professor who I would go to with challenges who might have well been a committee member, and I went to my other past professors for niche questions (Geology mostly). A lot of my friends were also doing a thesis, so it was great having people who understood, but it sometimes fostered an air of comparison and insecurity.

Were you able to get access to all of the research materials you wanted for your project?
Yes, there was just one report I really wanted to read that cost some $500. I was unsure who to go to if I wanted this purchased and didn’t want to ask the library to pay that because it was a bit niche.

Would you do anything differently if you went through the process again?
I would begin writing, not just researching and modeling, earlier. I had everything together organized, but I underestimated how much time writing would take. I had originally thought that my paper would be around 30 pages, as most of the Economics ones are, but I quickly realized that I had a lot of research, so it ended up being around 70 pages. I wish I had started writing earlier so that I could have seen how much I wanted to say and began to gauge how long it would take.

What advice would you offer other honors thesis students, especially in your department?
I would suggest using any resources at your disposal. Primarily, this is past students’ thesis either at Lafayette or at other schools or any of the research tools available through Skillman. I would suggest remembering that every advisor, every department is different so that comparing yourself to peers (progress, pages written) constantly is a waste of energy. I would suggest remembering that you will likely pass as long as you submit something that you are proud of! Above all, pick something that matters to you and you won’t get bored talking about nine months later!