Exploring the Impact of Sustainable Development on Study Abroad Experiences – State of the Planet

Simon Brody Caplan and Rachel Brzezicki, two faculty college students in Columbia’s Undergraduate Program in Sustainable Development (SDEV), give attention to their analysis abroad experiences and supply advice to school college students who wish to embark on associated adventures.

Q&A with Simon Brody Caplan

Simon Brody Caplan, a fourth know-how Angeleno, completed his SDEV diploma in February ’24. He’s now once more in Los Angeles, working as a advertising marketing consultant at EcoMotion, a sustainability choices company he interned for in the middle of the summer season season of 2023. Obsessive about vitality, native politics and environmental laws, he moreover finds time for his hobbies, along with climbing, shopping and martial arts.

What drew you to the Sustainable Enchancment major?

I wanted to help protect and defend a viable and pleasant pure world, nevertheless I think about we’re capable of’t do that besides peoples’ basic needs are met first. This led me to definitely worth the inclusive and socially involved framework that sustainable enchancment gives. Moreover, environmental and climatic factors are urgent and properly understood scientifically, so it’s time to provide consideration to political and institutional interventions. I felt the sustainable enchancment major would help me greater understand how all these facets come collectively and relate to at least one one other.

What are a number of of your occupation aspirations? How did the SDEV program affect these aspirations?

I have to go to mattress at night feeling like my work makes a distinction, even when it’s a small one. SDEV has carried out fairly a bit to make me take into consideration the ethics at play in our world monetary system, along with the implications of world native climate change. My education has made me further devoted to taking movement to combat native climate change.

Share some particulars about your experience abroad.

This technique I was part of on the Faculty for Worldwide Teaching was known as Argentina: People, Setting, and Native climate Change in Patagonia and Antarctica. We had been based totally in Ushuaia, the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Locals title Ushuaia the tip of the world. It’s pretty far south, on the southern end of Tierra del Fuego. I’d say it’s primarily probably the most pretty panorama I’ve ever seen, nevertheless whereas abroad I moreover had the privilege to go to Antarctica, which might take the cake. My analysis abroad highlights embrace working with Magellanic penguins throughout the Beagle Channel, creating my very personal evaluation problem with a neighborhood biologist, loads of late dinners with an distinctive host family, hikes of a lifetime and connecting with native of us.

Why did you must spend a semester abroad and the way in which prolonged did it take so to put collectively for the journey?

I was fascinated about doing this technique I chosen for two main causes: I wanted to reinforce my Spanish talents and revel throughout the pure wonderful thing about the world. I’m positively a considerably higher Spanish speaker now, and spending time in the beauty of Southern Patagonia didn’t disappoint. I went abroad all through my closing semester, as quickly as I had completed all my SDEV requirements, so organizing the journey was administratively easy. Numerous the executive work took a few month and a half to wrap up.

What was top-of-the-line half about your semester abroad? What was primarily probably the most troublesome half?

There have been quite a lot of most interesting parts about my semester abroad. It’s good to actually really feel equivalent to you’ve made a life someplace and that you could be return and dwell there in some unspecified time sooner or later eventually. Additional notably, it was very good to have a strong connection to my host family, and it was good to have the flexibility to find a model new panorama. The neutral analysis problem selection that SIT offers has the potential to be very attention-grabbing and I found my Neutral Look at Mission rather more illuminating and gratifying than my SDEV senior capstone problem.

What advice do you might have for school youngsters who have to do a semester abroad?

Do it, and offers your self some time to settle in and don’t concern an extreme quantity of throughout the first few weeks. Moreover, make an effort to connect alongside along with your host family when you’ve gotten one and offers your self the possibility to dive in by being versatile in lifestyle, consuming routine, schedule and so forth.

Q&A with Rachel Brzezicki

Rachel Brzezicki, initially from Kent County, Delaware, is presently a junior throughout the SDEV program. Previous her academic pursuits, she finds inspiration in watching nature and journey documentaries. She likes to be taught new languages on Duolingo and uncover reveals and events all through New York Metropolis. Simply recently, she has delved into watercolor painting as a model new creative outlet.

What drew you to the Sustainable Enchancment major or specific focus?

I’ve been conscious about native climate change and sustainability for as long as I can keep in mind, nevertheless it wasn’t until the pandemic that I actually felt its urgency. I was making use of to varsity all through that time, looking out for packages that may equip me with technical talents, space experiences and supply a holistic, actionable understanding of environmental analysis. Columbia had primarily probably the most distinctive and full program by far. The experiences I’ve had due to this regularly reaffirm my passion for sustainable enchancment.

What are a number of of your occupation aspirations? How did SDEV have an effect on these aspirations?

I’m notably fascinated about nature-based choices and the way in which they are going to improve communities’ top quality of life whereas functioning in tandem with the ecosystems they’re positioned in. I have to contribute to evaluation whereas using nature-based choices as a tool for advocacy. SDEV has truly made the most of the options that embrace being in NYC, nevertheless previous it. I was ready to spend a weekend throughout the Catskills finding out regarding the administration of NYC’s high-quality ingesting water and the stakeholders involved in sustaining the system. I’ve gotten to take heed to from customer audio system and professors working in environmental justice, metropolis ecology and many totally different areas. On the same time, SDEV permits me to take packages in every the pure and social sciences. I benefit from space work and knowledge analysis, nevertheless I moreover care about understanding historic and political contexts. SDEV lets me to do all of it and assemble a holistic technique to sustainability.

Share some particulars about your experience abroad.

I spent the 2023 fall semester in Costa Rica, finding out firsthand regarding the nation’s cultural dedication to sustainability. I visited pure farms, agroforests, nationwide parks, wildlife refuges, cloud forests and additional. I spent the ultimate month of this technique engaged on a directed evaluation problem in Monteverde, discovering out the constraints to meals entry of us domestically face, related to tourism, transportation and Verdes community currency. We spent each week surveying group members and farmer’s market distributors and visitors, gathering grocery pricing info and coping with the Monteverde Institute to understand how a neighborhood farmer’s market is meeting its goals of addressing meals security and facilitating social cohesion.

Why did you must spend a semester abroad and the way in which prolonged did it take so to put collectively for the journey?

I’ve been prolonged fascinated in Costa Rica’s dedication to sustainability and environmental security. Since I was in highschool, I’ve wished to verify abroad there to be taught further about it. I utilized for this technique in February 2023. It didn’t take prolonged to rearrange, notably since I was almost accomplished with the SDEV major and most of the packages I took in Costa Rica would fulfill the remaining requirements I needed.

What was top-of-the-line half about your semester abroad? What was primarily probably the most troublesome half?

I be taught most interesting after I’m actively throughout the space and this was top-of-the-line program for that. Every day, every week was fully totally different, with a whole lot of our time spent on in a single day space journeys to fully totally different parts of the nation. I didn’t have to stress about exploring the nation alone on account of we observed a whole lot of it as part of this technique. Most likely probably the most troublesome aspect was a shortage of private space and privateness. There have been 24 of us in my cohort. We slept, ate and studied collectively. Whereas I made some truly good buddies due to this development, I would like I had further alone time to really recharge as soon as I needed to.

What advice do you might have for school youngsters who have to do a semester abroad?

Be sure that this technique you are interested in aligns alongside along with your non-public goals. Attain out to various alumni and ask their candid opinions, every good and unhealthy.