8411 research outputs found
Sort by
A Case Study on the Conduct of a Nonviolence National Campaign for Political & Social Change in Sudan in 2020
No full textThis inquiry conducts an analysis on the situation in Sudan and explores the “non-violence” campaigns waged in confronting power in Sudan. Nonviolence campaigns in this context are explained as political strategies and moral philosophies that reject the use of violence as a tool to settle differences. In Sudan, these attempts manifested as political defiance campaigns employing methods of popular struggle including civil disobedience, public demonstrations, sit-ins, non-obedience, non-cooperation and other tactics used by nonviolent movements around the world advancing change to achieve social goals. The strategy of peaceful confrontation is leveraged which despise submission and passive acquiescence, and armed struggle. This case study provides an in-depth explanation of how to conduct a national campaign for political and social change in Sudan by using nonviolent methods to prevent parliament to pass constitutional amendments that allow President Al-Bashir to run for a third term in 2020
Elements of Successful Education Abroad Programs for STEM and Vocational Students: Lessons from the University of Wisconsin – Stout, Polytechnic
Get PDFIn a globalized economy, wherein manufacturing and knowledge trade are international, STEM – science, technology, engineering, math – and vocational degrees lead to international career paths. International experience through education abroad is relevant, therefore, to preparing STEM and vocational students preparing for these international paths. The University of Wisconsin – Stout, Polytechnic (Stout) serves as a case-study for the question: “What elements or structures of an education abroad program should be emphasized to build programs which best serve STEM and vocational students’ unique needs, creating an optimal environment for learning and growth, while preparing them for global careers?” Data collection to address this question includes interviews with the staff of Stout’s Office of International Education (OIE), drawing on all digitally available student records, surveying Stout study abroad student alumni, and follow-up interviews with a number of those students. Findings from each step of this process are analyzed against each other, seeking over-arching trends. Data analysis of program trends match to reported student experiences, and student responses reveal six elements key to programmatic success: academic fit, preparation in academics and mindset, structures which promote growth, location relevance to their field, having a balanced and enjoyable experience, and reflection connecting that experience to their future. These elements suggest application across all education abroad programs of the OIE as well as similar institutions. Beyond these findings, mis-matches between researcher expectations and quantitative and qualitative findings also reveal many opportunities for further investigation into the research question
Rebuilding Resilience of Rural Community Dwellers in Liberia Post-War: Case Study of Nimba County in Liberia
Get PDFSince the end of the war in Liberia, post–conflict development agencies have spent tens of millions of dollars in Liberia on justice, governance, security and infrastructure. These social cohesion methods in the past were considered a way of stabilizing the peace process. Unfortunately, these methods listed above overlooked rural communities. And these rural communities are actually affected by the conflict more severely. Can development aid contribute to social cohesion after the Civil War by focusing only on urban areas when most rural communities continue to be neglected? Evidence from a field experiment in post-conflict Liberia has emerged with lack of the basic needs which are critical concerns for those in Liberian rural communities. As Liberia remains one of the countries where new conflicts may arise, utilizing Participatory Ranking Methodology (PRM) is a valuable tool to redirect resources more effectively. I will use this method, which includes both qualitative and quantitative approaches of data collection to analyze the causes of poverty, a known destabilizer, and examine the effects and linkages to conflicts in the rural communities of Nimba County. My findings will suggest how government and post-conflict development agencies can transform relationships and effectively build resilience among the rural community dwellers
Promoting Pro-Environmental Behavior Through Engaging Cultural Diversity in the English as a Second Language Classroom
Get PDFRecent scientific environmental data are pushing people throughout the world to recognize and take action on the dire circumstances that the human race and all other species are currently confronting. This paper explores the factors that can influence and potentially empower people to re-examine their place in the natural world, and to orient their behavior in a pro-environmental direction. The premise of this project is that the topic of the humans’ relationship to nature is relevant and particularly well suited for the culturally diverse audience that is found in the English as a Second Language classroom. By using tools like the KAFAR teacher practice and an adaptation of Pat Moran’s Five Dimensions of Culture framework, instructors can draw on cultural difference to elicit their students’ environmental activism as well as deepen their own and their students’ self-awareness and inter-cultural learning
Organization-Based Disability Access: A YMCA Childcare Center Case Study
Get PDFThis paper explores the topic of disability access for organizations by utilizing three lenses. The first lens is Johan Galtung’s development as unfolding theory which uses the metaphor of a flower seed and an ecosystem to illustrate sustainable development, which is the embodiment of the coding or cosmology of an individual or culture with symbiosis as the aim. The second lens is Universal Design, which is a framework for designing spaces (and other things like curriculum) so it is useful for the most people possible (including disabled people). Last, Disability Justice is an approach to Disability Rights that prioritizes intersectionality. Data was collected through interviews at the YMCA Childcare Center in Bethlehem, PA. Specific themes that emerge from the paper are interdependence, organizational planning, communication within organizations, funding issues, mainstreaming, and the challenge of making intersectionality tangible for non-academics
Exploring Community Through Service in Cape Coast, Ghana: A Faculty Led Program
No full textExploring Community Through Service (ECTS) is a service-learning faculty-led program designed for ten undergraduate students through a third-party provider. It is a personally, professionally and academically rigorous program. The ECTS program will take place in the city of Cape Coast, Ghana which is on the Gulf of Guinea in the Central Region of the country in the Summer of 2020. Students will need to be of at least Sophomore academic standing and have a GPA of 3.2. The ECTS program is well suited for students who can take initiative in their own learning, work well in teams and groups, and are mature. Students must also be flexible, as the pace of life is different in Western Africa than what they might be used to.
The program’s thematic focus is on Ghanaian Women Entrepreneurs and Women in Business and will offer student participants the opportunity to explore this topic through participating in service- learning, site visits, interactive activities and guest speakers. In the spring of 2020, students will take a required course in Intercultural Communications in preparation for their time in-country. Taking the course before the in-country portion of the program will allow participants get to know the other participants in the group, learn concepts and theories of intercultural communications and allow for adequate time to prepare for the trip.
In addition to the courses mentioned above, a Ghanaian history and internship seminar will be offered. The excursions and field trips offered on the ECTS program are closely aligned with the curriculum to allow students to put theory to practice and apply their learning to life outside of the classroom. Through staying with a Ghanaian homestay family, students will be able to expand their understanding of the Ghanaian culture, people and further their intercultural communication skills
Elevating the Experience: Reimagining a U.S. Conservation Nonprofit\u27s International Volunteer Program through the Exploration of Past Volunteers\u27 Perspectives
No full textThis capstone examines a U.S. conservation nonprofit, referred to as Bojo-en, with the aim of learning from the perspectives of past international volunteers in regards to skill-building, professional development, and organizational support. This research aims to explore how a nonprofit can best support international volunteers in the hope that they will bring these skills home to implement in their own contexts, thereby contributing to the development of their home countries. This exploration is necessary to improve Bojo-en’s volunteer support, thereby benefiting future volunteers’ development and capacity-building and simultaneously benefiting the organization’s capacity and success in conservation. My research aims to address the question: From the perspective of international volunteers, how can a nonprofit organization best support their professional and personal development? It is my aim that this research serves as a model for nonprofits engaging international volunteers and provides best practices for supporting volunteers. I employed a sequential mixed methodological framework using phased methods of an electronic survey followed by one-on-one interviews with past international volunteers. From the data, common themes emerged that revealed the importance of including professional development and education in the international volunteer program. Despite the differing perspectives of past participants, there was the commonality of learning through experience, challenge, and reflection. The participants’ experiences led me to create a recommended educational component, consisting of five learning categories: environmental education and exchange, cross-cultural communication training, individual performance evaluation, personal growth and reflection, and training for team leaders.
Keywords: international volunteering, organizational support, professional development, sustainable development, capacity building, case study, grounded theor
The Value of Mentorship Opportunities: The International Student Mentorship Program
Get PDFColby-Sawyer College is home to about 20 international students from various countries who are now living in the small town of New London, New Hampshire. This paper proposes the International Student Mentorship Program (ISMP), which pairs new international students with trained domestic mentors to help them transition to their new home. Concepts such as training, student identity, cultural sharing, intercultural communication and awareness are all part of the ISMP’s design to not only aid international students transition to American life, but also provide cultural learning opportunities for US students. This paper will examine literature and theories that support the ISMP, conduct needs assessment on existing programs, followed by an analysis of survey results given to the current Colby-Sawyer College student body. Lastly, all findings will be used to create the ISMP proposal for Colby-Sawyer College
Perspectives on Community Policing of Durban Juveniles Living on the Streets
Get PDFThe aim of this project is to critically analyze the structure and performance of the South African Police Service (SAPS) at the nexus of juvenile criminal justice and homelessness. Facing issues of social discord, legitimacy, and patterns of corruption following the era of apartheid, SAPS plays a critical role in both preventing as well as eliminating crime. Therefore, this project focuses on a particularly marginalized community, under-aged street children, since the treatment of youth crime and/or criminality in Durban serves as a microcosm of a larger system of practices implemented by SAPS. Through in-depth interviews with local social workers, a representative from the Durban police service, and Cato Manor township residents, I investigated the purposes, benefits, as well as critiques of community policing programs targeting juveniles within the city of Durban. The findings illustrate that the perception of street youth as well as the police may change depending on geography, age and gender of the street child. Moreover, there is an overwhelming need to support juveniles living in such conditions, since the lack of social support beyond shelter living often leaves children disproportionately impacted by Safer Cities- era policing strategies
Water and War: The Potential for Perpetuation of Conflict Due To Climate Change
Get PDFClimate change has had a dramatic impact on the world’s weather for years, scientists can only make predictions about how global climate will continue to change going forward; but in all scenarios the circumstances are quite dire. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) will see some of the most severe effects of climate change, which will permanently alter the lives of millions of people in the region. In the MENA region, climate change is projected to result in extreme drought and temperatures which will lead to increased water scarcity, in what is already the most water poor region in the world. This decrease in water will lead to increased competition for resources, human migration, and conflict over water access. The MENA region has a long history of using water as a weapon in war, as well as a driving factor behind starting it. The researcher comes to this conclusion after research in the form of five interviews, as well as an extensive literature review. The research not only hopes to find an answer to the question of whether conflict is seemingly imminent, but to also show the ways in which international negotiation and support is needed in order to mitigate the effects of climate change