Last October, a team from UNC made up of Lauren Leve, an associate professor of religious studies, and Jim Mahaney, a research scientist in the department of computer science, traveled to Nepal to start the process of capturing the data needed to create an accurate 3D model of the Swayambhu Temple complex.

Religious studies scholar Lauren Leve partnered with a computer science class last semester to further her ongoing work to create an annotated 3D model of Swayambhunath, an ancient holy site in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley.

An interdisciplinary team made its third trip to Nepal to study the effects of climate change on the pristine Gokyo Lakes. Once again the researchers faced daunting challenges, logged some major successes and learned new lessons about adaptability, flexibility and resilience when conducting fieldwork in challenging environments.