An Interview with Michelle Eilers, Alice Rowan Swanson Fellow

Michelle in Belen, Chile with Aymara physician Don Basilio and Señora Benita

Michelle Eilers is a senior at Tufts University, where she studies Anthropology and Community Health. In the spring of 2009, Michelle participated on the SIT Study Abroad Chile: Culture, Development, and Social Justice program in Valparaiso. Originally from central Texas, Michelle has worked with Spanish-speaking Mexican immigrants. She became interested in minority-related health disparities when she had an internship and later worked at a small, family-practice clinic in rural central Texas. Michelle was recently awarded the first Alice Rowan Swanson fellowship, which provides grant money for SIT Study Abroad alums to pursue projects relating to human rights. To read more about Alice Rowan Swanson, click here. To learn more about the fellowship guidelines and to download an application, click here.

Why did you decide to do SIT Study Abroad in Chile?

When looking at study abroad programs, I knew that I wanted to study in Chile, and I was attracted to the possibility of working with a community and conducting independent research while abroad, rather than simply taking university classes.  I was attracted to the program theme in Valparaíso and I knew that I did not want to live in a city as large as Santiago, so I chose the program on Culture, Development, and Social Justice.
 
What was your independent study project (ISP) in Chile, and how is that connected to the work you will be doing in Chile this coming January?

A new Aymara birthing room at a hospital in Arica, Chile

My independent study project focused on the pregnancy and birthing practices of indigenous Aymara women, who live in northern Chile, Bolivia, and Peru.  I looked at how the traditional practices have shifted due to Chilean Ministry of Health norms and trends towards increased modernity, as well as the current processes in place to maintain these traditions.  The work I will do in January focuses on a particular program called Utasanjam usuña (which means “to give birth as in our house,”) which was implemented in the northern city of Arica to provide Aymara women with a traditional birthing room that provided the appropriate herbs and treatment from an Aymara doctor within the local hospital, to ensure safe deliveries.  I will work with the organization that implemented the program, PESPI (Special Program for Health and Indigenous Communities) to assess the awareness of the program for the Aymara population, and how it is being received by Western medical professionals and the Aymara community.
 
Why did you decide to apply for this fellowship, and what do you hope to get out of it?
 
Upon return to school this summer, I felt that I was unable to fully assess the situation I had investigated during the ISP period, and I wanted to provide the community with a tangible and useful resource that would facilitate the process of retaining cultural birthing practices.  I was unsure of how to find enough funding to be able to return to Chile, until I read about the Alice Rowan Swanson fellowship, which is an amazing opportunity for an SIT alum to give back to the community where they studied.

 

Michelle with two Aymara physicians

How will this fellowship influence your next steps, and what do you plan to do after you graduate from Tufts?

The fellowship allows me to understand the process of independent research and facilitate my career plans to work with similar communities.  Through my coursework at Tufts and my experience in Chile, I have learned and witnessed firsthand the discrimination that impoverished communities suffer from, and my goal is to make meaningful contributions to such groups to help improve their health status.  I plan to apply for a Fulbright or Rotary Scholarship to work with a maternal health program in South America, and I aspire to attend medical school and complete an MD/MPH, with a focus on international medicine.  Following this, I plan to continue working in international health development in Latin America.

How has SIT Study Abroad shaped the way you look at the world?

SIT Study Abroad provided me with eye-opening experiences that I would likely have never experienced otherwise; I was able to live with families of different social strata and experience life in both a rural and urban setting.  Apart from greater language comprehension, I am now more aware of distinct cultural notions and how to navigate differences in cultures.  Additionally, the program introduced me to the field of international development, through the lens of human rights and social justice, and allowed me to more fully understand global issues and how to think about international concerns of which I was previously unaware.

World Learning at the InterAction Annual Forum 2009

World Learning at Exhibitor hall

July 6 – 9, 2009
By Steffen Krueger
World Learning International Development Programs

World Learning International Development Programs participated in pertinent discussions about international development at the 2009 InterAction Annual Forum. InterAction, the largest coalition of U.S.-based international development organizations, held its annual forum outside of Washington, DC. Participants from across the NGO, corporate and government worlds discussed trends in global development and humanitarian assistance. InterAction and its members promote an agenda that focuses on U.S. development assistance improving the conditions of the world’s poor and most vulnerable by engaging with the U.S. government to advance poverty alleviation and humanitarian relief as major U.S. foreign assistance priorities.

World Learning, a member organization of InterAction, sent a delegation to the forum and presented at various panel discussions. Carol Jenkins, Acting Senior Vice President of World Learning International Development Programs, moderated the panel “Beyond our Boxes: Implementing Integrated Programming.” At this workshop, the panelists approached the topic of integrated programming using different content areas for analysis: climate change, food security, child survival, and post-conflict/conflict response.

World Learning at Advocacy day

Peter May, Vice President and General Counsel of World Learning, was a panelist at a discussion on “Regulatory challenges for NGOs.” At this panel, participants discussed issues of compliance with the Lobbying Disclosure Act, international employment practices and U.S. trade and economic sanctions. Finally Jeff Unsicker, SIT Graduate Institute Professor, spoke at the panel “North/South Policy Advocacy: Incorporating Southern Participation and Leadership in Global Campaigns.”

Another highlight of the forum was the Advocacy Day where World Learning staff met with senior staff working at Capitol Hill. Some participants met with members of Congress, including staff from Senator Jeff Merkley’s office (D – OR), Rep. Greg Walden (R – OR), Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) and Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) After the Advocacy Day meetings, a reception was held in the Rayburn House Office Building, where Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) gave a few brief remarks to participants.The meetings provided the opportunity to talk about the importance of international development programs and necessary reforms of the current U.S. Foreign Assistance Act, which was first introduced during the Kennedy Administration.

World Learning Commemorates World Day Against Child Labor 2009

Photo by Azra Kacapor

This year’s theme, “Give Girls a Chance: End Child Labor”

Today World Learning issued the following statement in commemoration of World Day Against Child Labor and the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the International Labour Organization Convention No. 182, which addresses the urgent need to work toward the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor:

By commemorating the tenth anniversary of this historic international agreement in defense of children’s rights, World Learning celebrates the substantial progress made toward the convention’s critical goals while recognizing the tremendous challenges that remain. This year’s theme, “Give Girls a Chance: End Child Labor,” resonates deeply with our development priorities and approach. World Learning is committed to the removal of all children from hazardous work environments and recognizes the unique systemic threats that exist for girls who are exploited for their labor.

Photo by Azra Kacapor

Across the world, an estimated 62 million girls are out of school and 100 million girls are involved in child labor. Poverty and lack of education too often force girls into some of the worst forms of child labor, often in hidden, unhealthy, and dangerous work situations. In many countries, girls’ labor is deeply entrenched in cultural practices and gender norms and takes place behind closed doors, removed from public scrutiny and concern.

World Learning’s approach to the elimination of child labor focuses on increasing access to quality and equitable education. Our work is broadly designed to address the worst forms of child labor, with a key focus on reaching those children involved in invisible forms of labor and ensuring they have access to quality schools. Through projects in Angola, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Peru and Guatemala, World Learning works with parent-teacher associations, Ministries of Education, and Girls’ Education Advisory Committees (GEACs) to ensure girls’ access, retention, and performance in schools. To address social barriers to girls’ education, World Learning’s programs help establish the school as the locus of community resources and influence. Through schools, community partners can unite and mobilize to tackle gender bias and protect girls from exploitation within their communities.
For examples of World Learning’s work combating child labor through education, see a video from our Wiñari project in Ecuador, entitled “Erika’s Story.” Also see a video from our USAID-funded CASCAID project in Ethiopia about a girl orphaned by HIV/AIDS who’s been given a chance to stay in school.

World Learning believes that educating girls is the single best investment that can be made to combat child labor and tackle the root causes of poverty. Our community partners daily witness the transformative power of girls’ education on the wellbeing of their communities when young women who have received education go on to reinvest in their children and their communities. More resources need to be mobilized to improve the quality of education for disadvantaged girls and boys. This investment will pay global dividends for generations to come.

Read more about World Learning International Development Projects.

Comparative International Education Society Conference

Charleston, SC, March 22 – March 26th, 2009

By Jen Durben, Programs Officer, Child and Youth Programs, World Learning

 This week, World Learning’s Child and Youth team are attending the Comparative International Education Society Conference, in Charleston, SC.  Members from the Child and Youth team are giving presentations based upon our work in Ecuador and Ethiopia.  On Sunday, March 22, Azra Kacapor, Director of Child and Youth Programs presented at a panel addressing the Preservation and Promotion of Indigenous Communities in Latin America: Politics, Language and Policy.  The panelist discussed issues of bilingual and indigenous education in Central and South America.  Azra discussed World Learning’s work with indigenous children in Ecuador who are involved in hazardous child labor. World Learning’s presentation was distinguished as the practitioner perspective among panelists representing different universities in the US including Michigan State, Vanderbilt, University of South Carolina, and Pacific Lutheran Universities.

On the second day of the CIES conference, Maria Gloria Barreiro and Maury Mendenhall presented on two different panels, each of which generated stimulating discussion.  Each of World Learning’s six participants have split off to maximize experience and networking capability.  Several conference participants from other organizations have remarked upon World Learning’s impressive level of visibility and level of professionalism at this year’s CIES conference. In addition, World Learning’s exhibitor table moved into a high-traffic area where many conference participants have stopped by to engage in conversation and to collect informational materials, as well as promotional materials.

Theory to Practice: Two SIT Graduate Institute Students Put Their Education to Work with World Learning’s Development Program in Northern Uganda

by Megan McBride, SIT Graduate Student/World Learning Americorps VISTA

Those who attend SIT Graduate Institute attest to its strength in field-based learning.  Current graduate students Demba Diallo and Rachel Unkovic had the opportunity to apply this learning when they completed their practicum in Northern Uganda with the International Development section of World Learning.

Rachel and Diallo spent three month working in the Kitgum district of northern Uganda on the Kacel Watwero project, which seeks to assist vulnerable children through youth leadership training.  In December, the members of the Kacel Watwero project produced a needs assessment, entitled “Speaking for Ourselves: An Assessment of the Needs, Resources, and Gaps in Services Available to Children and Youth in Kitgum District, Northern Uganda.”  
   
The strength of the Kacel Watwero project lies in the community-focused approached, called participatory project design, which World Learning and its partners utilized.  Diallo comments, “I have seen projects that failed in northern Uganda because the design was parachuted in from other parts of the world.” Rachel agrees; “The World Learning project focused on asking youths their opinions on the dangers facing the children in their own communities, and how to protect these children.  There is no one in the world better situated to answer these questions.”

Part of SIT Graduate Institute’s requirements include a six-month field practicum following the nine months on-campus phase.  Diallo observes that his course-work and training in the concentration of Sustainable Development in the Program of Intercultural Service, Leadership, & Management (PIM) prepared him for his work in Kitgum.  He remarks that, at SIT, they “teach you to be open-minded and respectful when learning about other cultures, things that are very important in development work.”  Rachel, who is also an alumna of the SIT Graduate Institute’s TESOL program, adds that “without having had the opportunity to study other conflicts, areas where conflict and identity interchange, and, most importantly, post-war development scenarios, I would not have had the capacity to comprehend much of what I heard.”  Rachel’s concentration is in Conflict Transformation in the PIM program at SIT Graduate Institute.

Work on this project has left a deep impression on both Diallo and Rachel.  “I learned so much about the resilience and strength of people, and their ability to work and hope and love, despite having lived through war and lost loved-ones.”  Rachel continues, noting she learned that “civilians, rather than governments and NGOs, are the true experts on reconstruction and post-war development.”   Diallo concurs with this lesson, citing that he learned to “always value the people you are trying to help by being as inclusive as possible, and that, “investing in youth is one of the best ways to do development work.” Their experience in Kitgum will guide their capstone thesis and presentation that marks the completion of the PIM degree at SIT Graduate Institute.

Upon completion of the PIM degree, both plan to continue working with vulnerable populations.  Rachel hopes to continue in the area of humanitarian aid and post-war development.  “I want to work to help policy-makers and larger governments remember the importance of listen to local peace-workers in individual communities.”  Diallo expressed a desire to return to Kitgum to continue to connect with the youth, stating, “they are part of my life.”  He comments that the youth of northern Uganda had begun to lose hope, but with the help of the youth leadership training of Kacel Watwero, “they are actually engaged and dreaming of being successful.”

Professor Nikoi Kote-Nikoi: promoting academic excellence and shaping economic policy in Ghana

Written by Susal Stebbins, SIT Graduate student

Like many of his colleagues at SIT Graduate Institute, Economics Professor Nikoi Kote- Nikoi practices what he teaches.  In doing so, he is having a major impact in implementing effective poverty alleviation policies in his home country of Ghana.

Nikoi came from a position as Economist at the World Bank and has been teaching at SIT (and more recently at Smith College, Marlboro College, the University of Ghana, and colleges in Zimbabwe and Bangladesh) on and off since 1989. The off-times – one extended leave-of-absence and one sabattical -  have allowed him to expand his part time business working as an economics consultant, researcher and policy developer in Ghana. 

Nikoi spent two years as Director of Research at the Institute of Economic Affairs in Accra, Ghana.  Based on that experience, Nikoi took the opportunity of his 2003 sabbatical to implement a new model for his own economic think tank. He had discovered that generally “if you’re doing consulting to pay the bills, there’s not much time to do [the] basic research” needed for developing sound long-term policy. Nikoi established the think tank by approaching donors to fund an endowment to support the Center for Policy Priorities.  Nikoi partnered with a researcher at the University of Ghana, and hires appropriate additional researchers (sociologists, political scientists, anthropologists) for specific projects as needed.

The Center for Policy Priorities was established in 2003. Nikoi explains, “We identify ourselves as a private, not-for-profit, non-governmental, public-policy research institution.”  He defines the Center’s focus matter-of-factly: “Our overall goal is poverty alleviation. We do basic research, come up with policy options, and advocate with government to augment existing policy or implement different ones accordingly.” The Center devises a research agenda for two or three sectors of the economy for three-year periods. Areas of concentration have included international trade and labor market issues (wages, job development, etc.).  Once the research is completed, results are published and disseminated to key stakeholders and decision-makers.

 “We do roundtables with primary recipients, who are mainly those in a position to implement the policies we’re advocating, and also with advocacy allies in civil society who are in a position to either apply pressure for implementation or help facilitate the implementation. So we do workshops at the Institute, not only on the outcomes of the research, but on strategies on how we can get them implemented. So right away we’re building a constituency around particular policies.” The institute also uses radio and television and Nikoi writes newspaper columns to build public pressure for policy changes.

The Center’s current strategy is to work on macro-economic policy that affects development outcomes across the country as a whole, by producing evidence-based studies that would help establish a positive environment for micro-level development practice.  Nikoi elaborates on the reasons for this: “Often you can do excellent research at the village level, or at the firm level, and try to implement the right interventions, and then the government will do something that entirely negates your efforts…So we think about what needs to be done at the national level to help this village or firm get its goods to market, or sell them abroad, or secure an uninterrupted flow of inputs at low transactions costs.”

The Center has been focusing on policies to address the developing Ghanaian oil industry. Oil was recently discovered in Ghana, and the Ghanaian government anticipates producing 20,000 barrels of oil a day by 2010, to be gradually increased ten-fold over ten years. Nikoi reflects that everyone in Ghana is concerned about what that would mean for Ghana’s long-term development goals. “If you look at the history of African nations that have discovered oil, it’s not been good… Everyone thinks that oil should be the ticket out of poverty, but in fact the opposite has often happened. So the whole country is interested in not only why that seems to happen to these bonanza economies in Africa, but also what we can do now by way of policy to prevent that from happening to Ghana.”  Nikoi is currently analyzing what happened in neighboring Nigeria and other African countries when oil production took off to see what policy lessons can be gleaned from their experience.

Just as the US conducted its historical 2008 election, Ghana also is having presidential elections in early December.  Nikoi’s institute has been, for the past year, assisting a Ghanaian political party to prepare for the elections by developing economic analysis and positions for their electoral platform.  He is also consulting for them on the current global financial crisis.

SIT graduate students benefit greatly from learning the details of Nikoi Kote-Nikoi’s practical application of economics and advocacy theory to complex real-world situations. Hopefully, they will be able to follow in his footsteps of maintaining a strong connection between academic excellence and making a positive impact on conditions in the world.

Article on Student Dorothy Sewe’s work with refugees

Dorothy Sewe, a student in SIT’s Sustainable Development degree, was recently featured in an article in the Grand Rapids Press.  In celebration of a new PIM class at SIT and the work they have conducted so far, the PIM Admissions blog wanted to bring this article to you.

Woman who specializes in reuniting refugees hands off work to Red Cross
by Pat Shellenbarger | The Grand Rapids Press
Monday August 18, 2008, 8:44 AM

Dorothy Sewe, left, teaches Red Cross volunteer Barbara Rosales how to locate refugees separated by war. Sewe, a refugee from Kenya, wears a shirt that reads: Einstein Was a Refugee.

GRAND RAPIDS — During a church service in a refugee camp, Dorothy Sewe heard a little girl sing, her voice clear and joyous, despite her ragged clothes.

Although penniless herself after fleeing her native Kenya, Sewe gave the little girl clothing and resolved that, if ever she got out of the camp, she would be a voice for refugees disconnected from their families.

“You are really vulnerable when you’re separated, because you are running to save your life,” she said. Finding long-lost family members is “like you are born again.”

Since 2005, through a program Sewe created as a volunteer for the Red Cross of Greater Grand Rapids, she has reunited dozens of refugees with families scattered around the world.

World Day Against Child Labor 2008 – Education: The right response to child labor

World Learning joins the international community in supporting World Day Against Child Labor (WDACL), an annual event hosted by the International Labor Organization (ILO). This year’s theme, Education: The Right Response to Child Labor, strikes at the core of World Learning’s work in removing children from the worst forms of child labor. There are an estimated 165 million children between the ages of 5 and 14 who are involved in child labor, often working long hours in hazardous conditions. For these 165 million children, the answer to their future is access to adequate education.

World Learning has a long history of combating child labor through education. Our projects aim to provide children with access to quality and relevant education as a means to remove them from the worst forms of child labor. Maria Gloria Barreiro, Project Director for Wiñari, World Learning’s Child Labor project in Ecuador, stresses the importance of education in combating child labor: “providing children with accelerated education programs, like what we are doing in Ecuador, is what keeps them in school, providing new opportunities for out of school and overage children and eventually pulling their families out of the cycle of poverty.”

Azra Kacapor, World Learning’s Director for Children and Youth Programs, says that “the key to breaking the cycle of poverty is to create opportunities through quality education for relevant and contextualized economic empowerment and job skills training for children and youth.” World Learning’s Wiñari project in Ecuador makes the link between education, economic empowerment, and life skills training by providing indigenous youth with specialized agro-technical high school programs. To date, World Learning has removed over 3,000 children in Ecuador from child labor situations by enrolling them in specially designed education programs.

Read more about Wiñari and World Learning’s other Children and Youth Programs here, or read a series of recent posts on Wiñari from World Learning NOW.

NAFSA 2008

Written by Jessica Smyser

The NAFSA 60^th Annual Conference and International Education Expo took place in Washington, D.C. May 25-30^th 2008. NAFSA reports that more than 9,000 registrants from more than 100 countries attended this year. As a leader in the International Education field World Learning had a strong presence in the committee room, in the presentations, and on the exhibit hall floor.

Potential students, sending school partners and alums all came by to visit World Learning in the Expo hall where representatives from SIT Study Abroad, SIT Graduate Institute, International Development Programs and Constituent Relations were all in attendance to talk about World Learning’s programs.

World Learning’s annual (and highly-anticipated!) NAFSA reception was held on Tuesday, May 27. This year’s reception was co-hosted by National Geographic-Glimpse at the National Geographic Society Headquarters. Over 400 sending school representatives, alums, partners and friends attended this event which featured a “Share Your Story” area and roving “radio” reporters. Guests were encouraged to record their experiences abroad and share the importance of international education and exchange from a very personal perspective.

Travel the backroads of World Learning

Over a period of several months in 2007, James Bernard – our Vice President of Communications – journeyed across the globe to capture the essence of World Learning through the magic of movie-making and a large dose of experiential learning. From Argentina to Vermont to the Kenyan coast and several countries in East Africa, James and a film crew from TEO Creative set out to explore the many textures of World Learning in a way that would visually convey how our work transforms people’s lives.

The 5-minute, 30-second video from those trips has recently been released and we are eager to share it with you. I also had a chance recently to sit down with James and get some behind-the-scenes back story on the making of the movie, that helped him understand, up close, the transformative experiences of those involved with World Learning programs — students, international development staff, local study abroad academic directors and staff, and homestay families.

The video project began in Argentina, where the team filmed students working on their Independent Study Projects on two SIT Study Abroad programs based in Buenos Aires. After nearly four days interviewing students who were exploring social movements, learning about a Catholic organization that works with children, and volunteering with a cooperative group in an impoverished neighborhood, the video team gained a great deal of knowledge about the Argentine people and how World Learning brings this culture alive for our program participants.