Week 9 - International Experience
It is hard to believe that this week marks my second last week at USIP. This week I had been asked by multiple individuals about my time at USIP and what I had learned. Aside from learning about the current situation that many people in Latin America are living in today, I also truly understood the fact that there is so much injustice in this world that we are unaware of. Often our lack of awareness is because there is not enough coverage on the news, however our lack of awareness can also stem from willful ignorance. I am not writing about this to indicate that this makes us bad people, I write this instead to encourage people to seek out resources that will educate them about the world around us. As someone who moved from one country to another, I realized that when you live somewhere you are often consumed by the different challenges that face your people, rather than looking at other countries. After moving to the United States I realized just how insignificant the problems my country has been facing were to people that were not Canadian.
My time here has shown me ways in which my country could improve but also ways in which other countries could improve as well. I believe this knowledge to be very important especially given that the current generation is entering the workforce and has the power to create positive change that will impact the generation that follows us. Not everyone will have the chance to study abroad, or take part in international travel nonetheless, that should not be an excuse for a lack of knowledge about the way things work in other parts of the world. Examining other countries, their policies, their laws and their culture are key factors in learning how we as a people and as a nation can grow to be better and to do better. It also shows us the valuable tools, skills and resources that we possess that should be shared with others. Ultimately what I learned from my research is deeper than the research itself, it showed me the importance of making the effort to become aware of other individuals' daily struggles in order to leave a positive impact in this world.