WVTF's Hausman Part of International Reporting Team

The International Reporting Project has chosen WVTF/RADIO IQ ’s Sandy Hausman (right) and 10 other senior news editors and producers from across the United States to take part in a two-week trip to Indonesia this spring.

During the visit, Hausman will report on a major food security initiative led by Virginia Tech That project, centered primarily on the islands of Java, Sumatra, and Sulawesi, will develop strategies for protecting high-value crops from damage by insects and disease. It is part of a larger effort, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, to raise the standard of living of people around the world through environmentally sound agricultural practices.

"Indonesia is a rising economic and political power in the world and is increasingly a model of how an autocratic state makes a peaceful transition to democracy," said John Schidlovsky, director of the International Reporting Project, which is based in Washington, D.C., at The Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.

The Southeast Asian nation is the world's fourth most populous, and it's home to more Muslims than any other country. "We are very proud of Sandy for being chosen to serve in this prestigious capacity and for the award-winning work she has done for us since taking over as our Charlottesville bureau chief," says WVTF/RADIO IQ Program Director Rick Mattioni.

Other reporters will come from a variety of news agencies, including the New York Times, National Public Radio, ABC News, the San Francisco Chronicle, “Marketplace,” PBS “Newshour,” CNN, National geographic and Foreign Affairs magazine.

(Virginia Tech press release.)