ASU Outstanding Graduate’s path from Peace Corps to global development
Ryan Watling stands at Maletsunyane Falls, the second-highest single-drop waterfall in Africa, during a hike between data collection site visits for SolarSPELL in January 2025. Photo courtesy of Ryan Watling
Editor’s note: This story is part of a series of profiles of notable spring 2025 graduates.
When Ryan Watling served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic, a nonfunctioning solar water pump became the moment that reshaped his understanding of global development.
“There was a solar-powered water pump and distribution system in my host site, and it hadn't worked since the NGO leading it had left,” Watling said. “I was beginning to question the delivery, power dynamics, and even the premise of international development and humanitarian aid. I knew there wasn't a simple answer for this situation, and I always wanted to further my studies.”
That realization sparked a deeper interest in the systems and decisions behind development efforts, eventually leading him to pursue a master’s degree at Arizona State University.
This spring, Watling has been named the Outstanding Graduate for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society, an academic unit of the College of Global Futures. He is graduating with a Master of Science in global technology and development.
Watling entered ASU with a strong foundation in Spanish and neuroscience, along with years of experience in education and youth development. As a returned Peace Corps volunteer, he was selected for the Peace Corps Coverdell Fellowship, which supports former volunteers pursuing graduate degrees focused on community engagement and service.
During his time at ASU, Watling engaged with global audiences by traveling to five countries across three continents. He also worked as a qualitative data analysis graduate student intern with ASU SolarSPELL initiative, where he traveled to Lesotho for three weeks to conduct fieldwork. There, he collected qualitative data, analyzed the findings and integrated the insights back into SolarSPELL’s research and development at ASU.
These experiences allowed him to bridge theory and practice. Watling applied what he learned about policy frameworks, ethical research methods and cross-border collaboration to real-world challenges. During an event in Washington, D.C., his Humanities Lab group project on climate change mitigation in Brazil was highlighted by former Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Reflecting on his experience, he says one of his proudest accomplishments isn’t just personal success — it’s what he’s been able to share with others.
“I am most proud of how I have relentlessly pursued my goals and, more importantly, how I've tried to bring others along with me on that journey,” he said. “I have tried to share these opportunities by passing along scholarship information and institutional knowledge to my peers. I consider my achievements most valuable when the people around me also get supported and recognized as well.”
Beyond academics and research, Watling has also demonstrated strong leadership. He currently serves as the master’s chair of the Graduate Student Organization in the School for the Future of Innovation in Society, where he supports new students, advocates for their needs and acts as a liaison between faculty and the student body.
Currently a semifinalist for a Fulbright award to Mexico, Watling is exploring opportunities in international development and public service or potentially returning to the classroom to teach again.
Question: Why did you choose ASU?
Answer: Frankly, I chose ASU because it provided the most transparent and significant funding for my master's program. I say this because funding is more than a check; it is a recognition of identities, values, and perspectives that students bring to the university. I felt invited and encouraged to be at ASU. Furthermore, the program is unique in its approach to analyzing global development, specifically with a focus on technology. Most other development programs only focus on international relations and not other dimensions. I wanted to explore the complexities of development alongside the social and cultural aspects of technology for development, and that's exactly what ASU offered. ASU is a massive university with significant global reach, so I knew that it would provide opportunities I couldn't even imagine to connect with people around the world as well.
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Ryan Watling presents his Humanities Lab team project at the U.S. State Department Diplomacy Lab Fair in Washington, D.C., in April 2024.
Photo courtesy of Ryan Watling
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Ryan Watling presents an overview of the qualitative data process he developed with SolarSPELL during the December 2024 end-of-semester presentations for SolarSPELL interns.
Photo courtesy of Ryan Watling
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A classroom in the Dominican Republic where Ryan Watling served as a Youth Development Peace Corps Volunteer in 2019.
Photo courtesy of Ryan Watling
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Ryan Watling conducts interviews with Peace Corps Volunteers and their local counterparts for qualitative data collection with SolarSPELL.
Photo courtesy of Ryan Watling
Question: What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to those still in school?
Answer: Find a way to get real-world experience. It will fill in the gaps of your classroom-based education and provide a more nuanced understanding of how your ideas or skills fit into the real world. You'll also have something that sets you apart from others during a job search as well.
Question: If someone gave you $40 million to solve one problem on our planet, what would you tackle?
Answer: It is difficult to pick just one problem to solve, and I don't think it is possible to "solve" an entire problem without considering how other problems also influence it. However, if I were forced to pick just one problem, I would use the $40 million to put towards educational scholarships and career guidance/development opportunities. I think there is a massive problem with people not being able to access education, being unsure of what career they want, and novel solutions being stopped because of it.
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