Alumni Profiles

Olivia Olsher

Campus: Duke
Hometown: London, England
High School: St Paul’s Girls’ School

Being captain of my school netball and track teams over the past 10 years has taught me many invaluable lessons; most importantly how to create a cohesive and effective team in which everyone feels valued and respected. These skills proved incredibly useful during secondary school, when I was involved in the Environmental Action Committee, Science Club, editing of The Foodie Magazine and the Head Girl Team, alongside varsity sports.

While I maintain a broad range of interests, the issue I am most passionate about is environmental sustainability, particularly in relation to food production and distribution. My interests in this area were sparked after volunteering in food banks and were further cultivated as editor of The Foodie magazine. I spent the following summer working on coffee farms in Costa Rica and learning about their production processes, and also interned at Sussex University in the UK, carrying out research on bee behaviour and the effects of pesticides on their health. This experience revealed to me that my interests in biology, people and sustainability could be combined to make constructive change in the way we feed the world’s ever-expanding population, and also left me with an insuppressible love for bees!

I am thrilled to be joining and learning from a community of such motivated and inspiring students as those in the Robertson Programme, and look forward to further developing my understanding of the world’s food issues so that I can be part of the solution.

What drew you to the Robertson Program?

The core values of the Robertson strongly resonate with me; this programme promotes the development of effective, moral, collaborative and passionate leaders – a commodity that is highly necessary in today’s world- and provides an extensive and personalised support network for the scholars. The opportunity to have my mind expanded and my opinions challenged by other Robertsons is something I look forward to immensely.

Robertson Scholars, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021, at Duke UniversityÕs Smith Warehouse in Durham, N.C.  

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