Nilroth Ly

• Hometown: Phnom Penh, Cambodia
• Languages Spoken: Khmer and English
• Declared Major(s): Biological Systems Engineering
• Declared Certificate(s): N/A

Q and A with Nilroth

1. Are there specific issues in poverty alleviation or development that you would like to work on or are currently addressing?

I’ve been honing my skills and focusing on learning and making connections as much as I can. But I want to go back home and emply modern farming techniques that are used here, help build or start up machineries systems.

2. Why is being a King-Morgridge Scholar important to you?

The opportunity to pursue my dream of feeding the every-growing human population at a good university & bring back home skills and experience that I can help the agricultural sector. Also allows for a global network of peers that are like-minded.

3. What is a fun fact about your hometown?

Cambodia has the largest religious structure in the world, Angkor Wat!

4. Why is having the King-Morgridge Scholars Program at UW-Madison important to the institution, state, and world?

On the institution level, diversity but not just race. It’s also backgrounds, mindset, and goals. On the state level, sharing of the rich expertise that the WI state encompasses. For me, looking at agricultural practices that farmers here employed (big ag machineries and dairy barns. Cambodia has only 1 or maybe 2 now). To the world, it bridges change makers from different part of the world and allow them a period (4 years) to be together, exchanged ideas, and make a connection for a lifetime. It’s like planting seeds at different locations across the globe.