Originally published in The Des Moines Register

An Iowa City native studying economics and international relations, with a focus on finding ways to promote environmental cooperation between the U.S. and China, has been named a 2016 Rhodes scholar.

West High School alumnus Jeffrey Ding was among 32 Americans who were chosen out of 869 applicants for the scholarship to attend Oxford University in England.

In addition to economics, Ding is also studying political science and Chinese at the University of Iowa. Ding has said much of his studies have focused on looking into ways the two counties can work together on environmental issues.

Ding had an internship with Hong Kong's legislative council in 2014, and he spent this past summer working for the U.S. State Department's East Asia Pacific bureau.

Last spring, Ding won two prestigious undergraduate scholarships: the Truman and Udall scholarships. The Rhodes scholarship will allow him to pursue a graduate degree at Oxford.

Ding's latest scholarship will be worth about $50,000 per year for two or three years. A total of 90 Rhodes scholars are selected worldwide each year.

Ding is considering a career in the foreign service, and plans to pursue a master's degree in international relations at Oxford.

In addition to his studies, Ding has been active on campus and was served as vice president of the University of Iowa's student government last school year.