Charlie Carlton

2023 Gilman Scholarship Recipient

Hometown

Plainfield, IN

Major

Insect Biology

College

College of Agriculture

Established in 2001, the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is committed to sending American students of limited financial means from all backgrounds to study abroad.

 

Charlie Carlton was awarded the Gilman Scholarship to study abroad in Australia on the Rainforests of Australia program. While in Australia, she will have a chance to interact with Australians and Australian Aborigines to understand their perspectives on insects. She will also be able observe how the reduction of Australia’s rainforests impact insects’ ecosystems. Australia’s diversity in insects drew her to choose this country.

 

Many people, at least in the U.S. find insects terrifying, disgusting, or both. Not Charlie though! She finds them fascinating. Growing up on a farm, she encountered a variety ranging from horseflies to caterpillars which inspired her to choose insect biology as her major. Her current focus is on cultural entomology to study how human reactions to insects vary across cultures.

 

Her experiences in Australia will provide the basis to begin educating the American public to value insects’ role in the ecosystem and hopefully become more tolerant to the idea of coexisting with these vital creatures. The follow-on project offers a great place to begin through middle school outreach.