WLU biology student’s research honoured

100 undergraduate students from across Canada were recently selected to present their research at the Rising Stars of Research competition at the University of British Columbia, and Wilfrid Laurier University’s Emily MacDonald was one of them.

“When I found out that my work was chosen I was shocked. I never thought I would be one of the ones to get picked,” said MacDonald.

The Rising Stars program brings together top undergraduate researchers in science and engineering from across Canada to showcase their research accomplishments and encourage student’s skills and enthusiasm for further research.

The main part of the event is the research competition, but the program also included workshops and lectures from outstanding faculty researchers.

MacDonald is currently pursuing her master’s degree in biology at Laurier.

The work she presented, which she completed during her undergraduate degree, involves studying the symbiotic relationship between legumes and bacteria and the meaning of the formation of nodules in the root systems.

If the research is expanded, it could lead to a large reduction in the amount of chemical fertilizers used in agriculture.

Along with biology, MacDonald also has an interest in environmental issues and says that she is glad that her research is able to connect to the hot topic of being “green”.

MacDonald’s work was also recently presented at the Canadian Botanical Association conference where it received an honourable mention.