Explore Econ 2021: winners announced!
10 June 2021
UCL Economics’ annual undergraduate conference, Explore Econ announced winners for both the Research paper and poster categories.
Explore Econ is UCL Department of Economics’ annual undergraduate research conference, inspired by research-based education and organised by the Centre for Teaching and Learning Economics (CTaLE).
This year, the conference hosted the engaging Ignite Session with a panel of academic experts, Marcos Vera Hernandez and Gabriella Conti alongside UCL students who discussed the “Economics of Health”. Winners were then announced for the Best Research Paper and Best Research Poster categories as well as the Popular Vote and drew attention to the fantastic achievements of UCL Economics students over the past year.
Explore Econ organiser Dr Ramin Nassehi said of the event,
“I was filled with joy to see such a high turn out by our students, staff and especially external guests from other universities. I believe the new paradigm of a "virtual blended conference" allows for a creative showcasing of students’ research and provides an opportunity to build a more inclusive and diversified learning community."
Best Research Paper
Winner: Antara Roy
Antara won for her paper "Investigating the impact of the US-China trade war on US soybean farmers"
Watch: Video Presentation
Runner-ups: Aditya Mori & Alessandro Guarnieri
For their paper "Synthetic Control Case Study: The Chilean Liberalisation"
Catch up with their presentation on YouTube.
Best Research Poster
Winner: Aadya Sharma and Kimberly Nyamushonongora
Third year students, Aadya and Kimberly won for their poster “Performance Pay in Health and Education – Can incentives transform efficiency in the public sector?”
Watch: Video Presentation
Runner-up: Victor Arribas Martinez and Gieun Cho
For the posters “Green Monetary Policy” and "Have the policy measures to control the house price in Seoul shown their effectiveness?" respectively.
Catch up with their videos on YouTube here and here.
Popular Vote – Paper
Winner: Xingzuo Zhou and Yichen Yu
Xingzuo and Yichen won Explore Econ’s most popular paper vote, out of a total of over 100 votes cast for their paper "Voter Turnout and Political Environment: A Case of United State"
Catch up with their video:
Popular Vote – Poster
Winner: Yi Tay and Jun Ang
Out of over 300 votes cast, first year students Yi and Jun have been awarded the Most Popular Poster for their poster "Friend or Foe: Regional Trade Bloc Responses in Light of The COVID-19 Pandemic".
Watch Yi and Jun's presentation:
The conference showcased independent work undertaken by UCL Economics students from all years of the undergraduate programme, much of it outside of the curriculum and was showcased in posters and presentations. Explore Econ also acknowledge the achievements of students inside and outside of the curriculum:
- in the First Year Challenge, a multimedia film project,
- the third-place finish of UCL students at the Econ Games,
- the Econ Tribune Essay Competition winners
- the Econ Tribune Student Publication Association Award
- the Econ Frame Photo Competition