Project HAPPIEST 2025 Cohort

Santiago Diaz de León

My name is Santiago Diaz de León. I am majoring in Urban Ecology with a minor in Design, and I am expected to graduate in 2026. My mentor this summer was Dr. Alexandra Ponette-Gonzalez, and my graduate mentor was Yarong Cao. My favorite memory from this Summer 2025 was climbing and hiking with my friends at Little Cottonwood Canyon. The most surprising thing I’ve learned about my research was how unpredictable data collection was. I thought that it was straightforward, but we encountered some sensor problems and we had to troubleshoot. Since this was my first summer in Salt Lake City, I also had to adapt to the intense heat because I had to collect data. I also didn’t expect how much of the analysis depended on making judgment calls, deciding whether we counted the tree because it was too far from us or not. This research opportunity also taught me everything, from the project background to the data collection phase, analyzing the data, generating the results, and presenting them to the public.

Carlos Flores

My name is Carlos Flores, and I am a psychology major. I expect to graduate spring of 2026. During the summer, I had the opportunity to work for Dr. Monika Lohani and Ginger Blodgett in the Applied Cognitive Regulation Lab. Through my experience working for the lab, I understand how essential the early stages of a project are. My favorite memory of the summer was going out hiking with the other wonderful HAPPIEST scholars to Cecret Lake. My time working for HAPPIEST was an amazing experience, and I learned many valuable skills. 

Evan Klansnic

My name is Evan Klansnic and I am majoring in Sociology, with a minor in Writing and Rhetoric Studies. I am planning to graduate in Summer 2027 and pursue a master's in Urban and Regional Planning.  My faculty mentor was Alexandra Ponette-González, and my graduate student training coordinators were Yarong Cao and Toby Armstrong. My favorite memory from this summer was hiking Mt. Timpanogos at night on Pioneer Day, barely making it to the top before the sunrise peaked over the horizon. One surprising thing I learned about research is how quickly external factors can influence your data. This taught me how critical it is to design methods that isolate what you truly want to measure.