Valerie Ferguson is a first-year graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin, where she is working on her master’s in Global Policy Studies. Her primary focus in school is security studies and environmental policy and how these two can help to provide security from the ground up. She particularly likes to focus on how these two intersect with cultural preservation. Through these passions, she was able to learn more about international immigration and the reasons that would motivate someone to do so. Valerie had the opportunity to learn more about the refugee process through her internship with Refugee Services of Texas. There, she was able to create maps tailored to different regional markets or cultural hubs to try and help the refugees feel comfortable in Austin, Texas. Outside of school and work, she enjoys reading of any genre and hiking.
