While earning her bachelor's degree in psychology from the Brandywine campus, Penn State graduate Megan Draper completed a unique research project that allowed her to explore her passion for primates and pursue a career in her dream field.
In September 2013, the Cooper Honors Scholar traveled to Borneo, in southeast Asia, for six weeks with the Orangutan Tropical Peatland Project (OuTrop), which works to protect, conserve and restore several of the most significant areas of tropical rainforest in Borneo. One of OuTrop's main goals is to safeguard the wild population of primates in the region, such as the orangutans, red langurs and Bornean gibbons.
During her stay at OuTrop's remote rainforest basecamp, Draper assisted scientists with collecting data about known primate feeding and sleeping trees, and she was even able to participate in early-morning treks through the forest called “primate behavior follows.” She also researched other animals and insects of the rainforest such as butterflies and wild cats in the region.