Graduate profile: Megan (Puchniak) Otu
PhD candidate Megan Otu’s voice fills with emotion when she talks about her aquatic ecology research in Africa. “Being able to conduct research abroad was a great growing experience for me,” she says.
Megan’s research focused on Lake Bosomtwe in Ghana, the only natural lake in the region that supports a human population of 20,000.
In the past, little was known about the ecosystem, but a group of scientists were able to obtain approval to study it,” Megan says.
Megan looked at how human land use and climate change affected the current aquatic ecology and ultimately the organic matter deposited on the lake’s floor.
By allowing scientists to study the lake, we were able to see how the whole ecosystem works,” she says.
For the people of Ghana, the arrival of the scientists was devastating to them on a personal level.
People in Ghana are very emotional about their lake because it is sacred to them,” Megan explains. “They have a very spiritual connection and believe there is a god who has influence over the lake, such as providing a certain amount of fish to be harvested.”
Despite the initial apprehensiveness of the Ghanaians, Megan was able to open the channels of communication and develop positive relationships with those who lived closed to Lake Bosomtwe.
I wanted to speak to the people and ask them what their thoughts were about the lake and what changes they saw occurring,” she says. “I was also able to use science to explain that climate change had reduced fisheries in the lake and encouraged the villagers to help protect their environment.”
Megan’s efforts in Ghana were recognized and she was offered citizenship in the town of Dompa and honoured with the tile of Queen Mother of Development by the village government to take on the role of environmental stewardship and development.
It’s really nice to see that I am making a difference to people in Ghana,” she says.
Even though she has wrapped up her research, Megan will continue to have an affiliation with Ghana. She has formed a Canadian-based charity that will raise funds to develop educational facilities and environmental initiatives.
In Ghana, schooling is free until grade 6, but many parents believe children should work on their farm,” Megan says. “I want to build schools for children so they will have more opportunities for a better future."
Now that her time in Ghana has come to a close and the long road to completing her PhD has ended, Megan will head to the University of Colorado to continue doing research. “I’ll be looking at several glacial lakes in Colorado and explore how they have changed in the last 200 years,” she says.
Even though Megan is moving on, she believes her time at Waterloo helped her get to where she is today.
I felt really encouraged when my post-doctoral professor at the University of Colorado told me I was her top choice,” she says. “I think Waterloo prepared me really well and I feel like I am ready to tackle the next job."
